Skandian Slaves
by Therealgirlygeek
Summary: "I've got a job for you." "I'm listening…" Clearly not thinking, Evelynn reflected with annoyance. If she had been, she wouldn't currently be standing in Redmont Castle, in the dead of night, hiding in a closet. Or if she had made some better choices earlier in life. Rated T because of future chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**1**

" _I've got a job for you."_

" _I'm listening…"_

Clearly not thinking, Evelynn reflected with annoyance. If she had been, she wouldn't currently be standing in Redmont Castle, in the dead of night, hiding in a closet. It had been two hours, and every time she moved to leave, she could swear she heard a noise outside the door and she'd stop. It was almost as if she were waiting for the castle itself to move from her hiding spot to allow her to leave. Evelynn had decided that she was either imagining things, the castle was just very noisy at night, or someone had decided to go to sleep right in front of the door. The last option seemed the least likely, but she still had it on her possibilities list. After all, who would fall asleep in front of a closet?

She reflected on how she had even gotten herself into this situation. She had been at a tavern in Wensley, and she was having a conversation with a possible customer. Evelynn was a hired thief, and very good at what she did. She had found out years ago that moving naturally with the shadows on the ground made her less visible, especially if no one expected to see an intruder. She had also found out that Rangers needed to be avoided.

 _The man sat down next to Evelynn at the tavern bar. She glanced over at him, not moving her head. People seemed to assume you weren't looking at them if you did that. Evelynn wasn't sure why. The man just sat there, and didn't order anything. Perhaps that was because the bartender seemed slightly intimidated by him. Evelynn had been eating dinner, a relative rarity for her once her job propositions had started dwindling. It was the Rangers, she knew that. Everyone was scared to get goods by not totally honest means, and Evelynn had found herself falling into a pit._

" _Heard quite a bit about Redmont," the man beside her said. "It's one of the biggest, and by those means, one of the richest."_

 _Evelynn cocked an eyebrow. He seemed to be hinting at something._

" _I've also heard quite a bit about your skills in the loop."_

 _Evelynn was thoroughly interested now. She sat up to face the man. He had a full beard, and a hood that concealed the top of his head, ending at his dark brown eyes. He wore a thin leather vest, a stained white tunic underneath, the sleeves rolled up to reveal beefy arms. He wore dark trousers, stained so by mud and caked dirt that Evelynn wasn't entirely sure what the original color had been. He had brown, equally dirt-caked boots on his feet._

" _I've got a job for you."_

" _I'm listening…"_

 _So was far too much of the tavern. Evelynn and the man had the same idea, to go somewhere more private to discuss this proposition of his. So Evelynn finished her food and he led the way out._

" _Right, so as I was saying. My name's Fenn Yuman. I've got a job for ya. See that castle up there?" Fenn pointed at Castle Redmont._

" _Yep. It's pretty obvious up there, isn't it?"_

" _Yep. Anyway. We've got a goal up there, and none of us are stealth enough to get past the guards, see? Not to mention the Ranger."_

 _Evelynn nodded. She saw where this was going. She didn't like it, but she still needed to make a living._

" _Right. So, there's this thing up there, that we've been needin'. It's got some information about a diplomatic meetin' with the Skandians in it."_

" _That's nothing new. Araluen has been having meetings with the Skandians since Treaty, and some time before."_

 _Fenn smiled._

" _See, there's the thing. This ain't no normal meetin'. Rumor has it that the Queen's goin' on this one, and so's Treaty."_

 _Evelynn eyed Fenn with a level of suspicion. How'd he know so much about this meeting? And why did he need anything in the castle?_

" _Wait. Hold on. You said 'we', twice now. Who's 'we'?"_

" _Nothin' of concern."_

 _Evelynn had a distinct feeling that it was of concern, but she didn't question it any farther._

" _So, what's up in the castle that you need me to get?"_

" _A map."_

 _Evelynn wanted to laugh. She was being sent up by a stranger to get a map?_

" _There are a million maps around Araluen, probably at least a thousand in Wensley alone. What's so special about this particular map?"_

" _It outlines their course, see. We want ta use the route to travel safely, given the Skandian raiding ships along the connected coasts. We're a tradin' group, see."_

 _Fenn's story seemed to line up alright, so they made the arrangements and once Evelynn had retrieved the map from Castle Redmont, he'd pay her pretty nicely._

Of course, at the time, Evelynn hadn't considered the danger of the task. Just getting enough to last her through the winter, since that was a dangerous time for her, since it's hard to steal food from farmer's crops when there's no farming going on. The castle's hallways were dark and forbidding at night. Though, to those who were there on legitimate business, it might feel downright homely. Evelynn didn't know. Nor did she necessarily need to know, since she was there for one job. Then she could get the hell out of there. She didn't need to accept any more jobs that took her into the castle's walls, and would tell them to find someone else. Of course, then she wouldn't get any more propositions, or at least they'd be few and far between.

Didn't matter. She could think about those things after she was out of the castle's walls and safely back in town, where she could blend with the crowds and avoid the gaze of anyone from the castle or the Rangers. She hadn't seen the local Ranger, Treaty, yet, but she wasn't going to be shocked if she did sometime tonight. Hopefully, not in a face-to-face confrontation. That, likely, would not end well. At least for her. She had no clue how it could end for the Ranger.

Evelynn quickly and quietly made her way up the stairs, watching for attackers the whole way up. A common design for castles was to have them turn up the right side, so that a swordsman would only have to expose his sword side and an attacker would have to show a whole exposed side of his or her body to retaliate. Evelynn had nearly been killed by this design, and had been extremely wary of it since.

Thankfully, no one was in a fighting mood that night, and she met no opposition on the staircase. On the next floor, Evelynn had to pull out her map of the castle's layout as reference. Fenn had given it to her so that she found the right room, rather than walking into some poor person's quarters while they were asleep. Evelynn nodded in confirmation as she realized she was going the right way, and darted down the hall, her padded soft leather boots making as little sound as possible. Soon, she was in front of the forbidding iron door that led to the baron's study.

Why a map regarding a trip between Araluen and Skandia was in Redmont, Evelynn wasn't sure. Surely they would have had Treaty come to Castle Araluen to review it, if he was indeed going on this trip? It seemed quite unlikely that he would rather stay in Redmont. Then again, Evelynn didn't know anything of the way of Rangers. They were strange, that's for sure. Nothing like what Evelynn was used to dealing with in the way of soldiers and guards. She glanced around for a less obtrusive door to enter, and realized that there wasn't one. So, she tested the door, hoping to find it unlocked. No such luck. She sighed, pulling out her lock-pick gear. Hopefully it didn't make enough noise to alert the castle guards to her presence.

She wiggled the thin piece of metal around in the lock until it clicked. With a triumphant smile, she swung the door open. The study was empty, naturally. It would have been rather strange for someone to be working at this hour of night, and there were still papers strewn along the surface of the enormous oak desk. She sighed. It might take a little bit for her to snag the dumb map she had gone to so much trouble to get. Longer than she had been hoping it would take, at any rate. She quietly shut the large iron door and began to shift through the baron's papers.

It took two and a half hours, but Evelynn had finally found the goddamn map she had used so much energy to find and to leave the castle unnoticed. The dumb thing hadn't even been on the desk - it had been in a drawer, which had taken quite a while to search. Then she found herself back to jumping slightly at every single noise that sounded even remotely like a footstep. _I need to stop doing this,_ Evelynn thought. _There's gotta be a more honest way to do this. I'm almost fifteen, and most of the people who would be looking for apprentices will be doing so pretty soon. Winter's almost over at any rate._

That resolution in mind, she snuck out of the castle and into the courtyard.

And caught sight of the Ranger.

Damn.

* * *

 **Hi.**

 **This is a new thing I'm trying to do.**

 **I shall try to keep this up.**

 **That is my resolution for 2018, to finish this story.**

 **I'm sorry if this is kind of short. Also, I'm sorry if, in future chapters, if anyone's OOC. Please give me constructive criticism and feedback! That would indeed make my day. And maybe keep me motivated. IDK. I can still use it to improve my writing, in any case. Yay. Uh. Yeah.**


	2. Author's Note('Tis long, sorry!)

**Hi. This is basically an author's note. So um. I need, need to stop giving working titles to stories. The first time I did this, I intended for it to be about interdimensional jewels(long story), but it took a very,** ** _very_** **different track from what I was intending, starting with even just the first chapter.**

 **So. For this story, I have about 11 chapters totally written out, a backstory all planned out, and a plot well underway. I was intending for Evelynn's backstory to be fairly different from what it turned out to be, but chose against it for fear of it being to cliché. So I started trying to mold my story around the title, and while I was thinking, I came up with some good ideas - but none of them are really all that related to the title. So, I'm probably going to be changing the name, probably to something along the lines of "Skandian Slaves", which coincides much better with my plot. Just letting you guys know that the title's going to change. So... yeah.**

 **While I'm here, I might as well mention that, since I've got all these chapters written out, I'm in to lack of writing intent. However, I am going to be trying to stick to a fairly rigid update schedule. Chapters will come out on Saturdays or Sundays. Expect Saturdays - I'm hyped about the story!**

 **However, I know that writer's block is evil. It has stumped me many a time before, and I do not want it to intervene with this story, which is why I'm not updating chapters as soon as I'm done writing them - I almost fell victim to it in the last couple chapters I wrote. Long story short, they cover a lot of events, but in a little amount of space, because I wasn't sure where to go with some ideas and sort of worked around scrapping them, while keeping them in the story. Because plot reasons. Yeah. Anyway, uh, once I've finished going over Evelynn's backstory in the actual story, then I'll probably wind up posting a story with her entire backstory, for those who don't want to be forced to scan the whole book for it after reading it if I ever decide on a sequel.**

 **I'm thinking** ** _way_** **too far ahead for the time being, aren't I? XD anyway, uh, this was mostly to say that I'll be changing the name of the story to "Skandian Slaves", or something of that caliber, and updating mostly on Saturdays, though if I have a crammed Saturday, expect it to be on a Sunday. Even if it's just an update on how writing has stalled thanks in large part to the evil,** ** _evil_** **thing called writer's block, I'll make an effort. I shall not give up on this story!**

 **So uh, yeah. ^-^ Mostly I'm writing in my free third period at school because my college course hasn't actually started yet, and won't until the 5th. Yayyyy... why, college course, why you do this to me ;-;**

 **Okay, I'm going now. Bye!**

 **~Girly**


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: I thought I should probably put this in here somewhere.**

 **Disclaimer!: I am not John Flanagan. If I was, I probably wouldn't be writing fanfiction. I'm also not Australian, named John, or a guy. So yeah. Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

 **2**

He was right in the way between Evelynn and freedom. She couldn't simply sneak past him, since they always seemed to notice that sort of thing. It would be a bad idea to run at him, or to attack him, since they were quick as lightning and never missed a shot. She'd be dead, or at the very least incapacitated, before she could take a step. She started to retreat back into the castle, to find a way out around the back, when the guard noticed her.

"Hey! You're not supposed to be here!"

Evelynn froze, for just a moment. It was still enough time for the Ranger to catch sight of her, though. The guard who had spotted her, along with a buddy of his, ran towards her. She turned tail and ran, hoping to avoid any further confrontation. She mentally berated herself. Why did she just stand there, in plain sight? She should have at least ducked behind a wall to contemplate her choices. This is why she needed a break. To rethink her methods of approaching danger and conflict. Clearly, what she usually did wasn't going to work most of the time. Now, of course, she couldn't figure out what she could do in the future. Right now, she had to find a way to go around the Ranger and guards. Without coming into confrontation with the Ranger, because she'd probably be dead before she even started. She nimbly slung one of her throwing knives out of her belt and chucked it at the closest encroaching guard, the sharp blade hitting the space between his eyes with a satisfying _thunk_. He dropped dead, and his buddy noticed this and ran away, fearful that she'd do the same to him.

The Ranger showed no such qualms, however. Evelynn suspected that he'd just avoid her knives somehow, so she didn't even try. If nothing else, he might think that she had only had the one, when in reality she had a couple more. She glanced around, searching for windows. Unblocked windows, in any case. At last, she found one, though it was blocked with glass. No matter. It would probably hurt in the morning - not to mention right now - but she was aware she had some of the body strength to break through it. She'd deal with the cuts and bruises after she had successfully avoided being caught by the Ranger. She quickly pulled up the hood of her short, black cloak to protect her head from glass shards and slammed the left side of her body into the window pane.

The glass broke, letting her free, but the resulting pain was sudden and immediate. Evelynn desperately clung onto her silence, squashing the yelps of pain before they began. The Ranger watched her, cowl up so she couldn't see any features of his face. Just the cloak, which already seemed to be melting into the background. She watched him for a moment before her senses returned to her and she started the painful, but short, dash to the near side of the wall. Climbing it was another matter altogether, however. Evelynn cursed herself. Why did she crash through that window? Why, oh why, when she knew she still had to climb over the wall? Her eyes scanned the flat side of the wall, looking for a clear and relatively painless way to scamper up it.

There. A fairly hole-filled side of the wall. She climbed up it, regretting further the decision to slam through the window with her body. She needed to get the hundreds of tiny cuts covered, at the very least, lest she face an infection. She staggered through the forest, hoping to reach Wensley some time before dawn.

Thankfully, that seemed to be the case. On the other hand, the Ranger appeared to have gotten there before her. Probably keeping an eye out for her, Emily realized. Small thefts in the village were noticed and investigated briefly, until they decided to add it to the stash, but running in on the castle… that was a different matter entirely. Maybe the map was more important to the Rangers than Evelynn had thought. In that case, she better get her full dues from Fenn, or he'd be seeing the receiving end of a knife. On that, Evelynn swore.

Right now, however, Evelynn knew that to stay undetected by the Ranger, she'd need to get a fresh set of clothes and patch up her cuts. Her cloak was cut in numerous places, requiring that it be replaced. Her tunic sleeves and her trousers were cut away to basically bare covering, and she knew by feel alone that in every place the clothing was cut, with exception of her head and neck, the glass had drawn blood. She was a walking sign saying "Here I am!" to any Ranger around who cared to find her. She sighed. There went her food money for the winter, she'd need to use it all to replace her torn clothing.

Right now, though, she had to find Fenn. Maybe give him a piece of her mind about sending her off running to Castle Redmont and almost getting caught by a Ranger. Maybe give him a taste of the hundreds of tiny cuts covering the left side of her body. _Then_ give him that god-forsaken map he wanted. Maybe he wouldn't want it anymore, knowing that a Ranger was after it. Maybe he didn't have the courage to stand up to a Ranger. Then again, most people didn't. Evelynn knew she didn't, and she'd had a few scrapes with them herself, including tonight. Of course, that might only make him want it more. Evelynn wasn't going to try to guess his actions and reactions prematurely.

Evelynn popped out of Wensley and into the woods after stealing a nicely sized roll of cloth from a shop, and down to the bank of the Tarbus that was shaded by the trees from the castle and the village. Hopefully, that also meant the Ranger. She used the small knife that she hadn't lost in her dash from the castle - Evelynn wasn't even sure when it had happened - to cut the cloth she had stolen into parts large or small enough to cover cuts, after washing them and removing her bloodstained, torn clothes. She decided she could leave the cloak be - it could draw more attention than needed to herself. However, she didn't think it would work out well if she left her tunic and trousers behind, not to mention her boots. Those had somehow managed to avoid any tears to her feet, though they were marked in several places on the left side.

After washing and covering her cuts, she looked at her trousers and shirt to find some way to redeem them. They were a dull brown, and not a match for the cloth she had taken. She sighed, and put the torn clothes on - maybe she could make some excuse about falling from trees. What world that would make sense in, in the middle of the night - no, scratch that, extremely early morning, since the sky was starting to lighten somewhat from the hidden, rising sun - was up to Evelynn's imagination. She also doubted it would pass the Ranger's notice, anyway. They had strange ways.

Evelynn glanced at her cloak - barely more than a useless piece of fabric by now - and decided to cut it into shreds and use it as a darkening on top of her clothes, to try to hide the obvious tears in the necessary fabric. Maybe the slight off-color would be passed over in a rush. Evelynn could really only hope.

By the time she finished, the sun was coming up into visibility and the sky was tinted a pale pink-orange color. Evelynn decided it would be a good choice to return to Wensley to look for Fenn, and get the dumb map to him. She sheathed the knife and set off towards Wensley once more, her observant, dark brown eyes darting back and forth for signs of the Ranger or anyone else with a reason to seek her out for malicious intentions. And for Fenn, of course, but it was unlikely that he would be outside of the town without a reason to. Heck, he might not even be up. That would certainly be a pain in Evelynn's side, she thought sourly. It wasn't like she had just stayed up the entirety of the night, infiltrating a castle, running from a Ranger, and dealing with cuts from broken glass for his damn map. She better get some thanks from him.

In Wensley, Evelynn was relieved to find there was no sign of the Ranger. Of course, knowing Rangers, he could just be hiding in that damn cloak of his, waiting for her to come into his range. No matter, the tavern wasn't far from this edge of town, and Evelynn was hoping to find Fenn there. If that wasn't the case, it didn't seem as though Fenn was from Wensely, or even Redmont, so he would likely be in the inn if he wasn't at the tavern. Maybe Evelynn should just start at the inn - seemed the more likely of the two places. Taverns were for dinners or drinking, later at night, or at the very least once the sun was completely up, rather than halfway clearing the horizon. Glancing up at Castle Redmont, though, Evelynn had to admire the red tint of the castle's walls in the rising sun. No doubt, that was where the fief had gotten the name from.

Evelynn swung open the door to the inn and found Fenn's cloaked form in the corner. She strode over to him, and sat down in the chair across.

"Alright, I've got your map," Evelynn said in a low tone. "Now, pay up."

Fenn looked up at her in shock. Clearly he hadn't noticed her come in.

"Where is it? I wan' to see it before I give ya the money for it." Fenn said, his surprised gaze quickly turning to suspicion. No doubt worried that she might run off with the money, without giving him the map he had paid her to get. Evelynn dug around briefly at her belt and pulled out the folded piece of paper.

"This was a damn hard thing to get." Evelynn put the map on the table, putting her elbow on it as Fenn was reaching out for it. "Almost got caught by the Ranger."

Fenn looked surprised.

"I thought Treaty was at Castle Araluen already," he said to himself, before realizing Evelynn was still there. This news about Treaty's supposed location was news to her. She stored it away, in case it came of any use to her later on. "No matter. Give me the map, and I'll pay up."

Evelynn shook her head. "No, you've seen it. I want you to pay me, and then I'll give it to you." Fenn scowled.

"I said for ya to give me the map 'fore I pay ya," Fenn said, clearly annoyed.

"No. What you said, if I recall correctly, was that you wanted 'to see it before I give ya the money for it', in your words." Fenn's scowl deepened at Evelynn's statement. Of course, she knew it was true, and didn't want to give up the money that she might actually need for clothes or food.

"Fine." Fenn said. "But I was s'posed to be gettin' the money for it tonight. Wasn' expectin' ya to get it so soon."

"Why didn't you come to me tomorrow then, or at least once you got the money?" Evelynn asked, hiding her questions about his statements this morning until it was necessary, including the latest one. Why would he need to wait until tonight?

"'Cause, see, we needed the map to plan our course to the Skandian tradin' post we're goin' ta," Fenn replied. "An' we were s'posed to leave fo' port t'morrow."

"Doesn't matter… if you need this map so badly, is there something else you would be able to give me? Promises of future payment don't really work too well in the business I'm in."

Fenn looked increasingly uncomfortable. Based on his size, Evelynn thought it might be an incredibly dangerous business to antagonize him too much, but she also needed money to get less noticeable clothes. Pretty soon, she was sure.

"Well… that's the thing, see. I don't…" Fenn started, and then suddenly lunged at Evelynn, with a knife he had been hiding under the table. Evelynn countered pretty quickly with her own knife, and pulling the map off the tabletop. Multiple pairs of eyes cut to their exchange in the corner, and Evelynn growled. This wasn't a good idea, especially since she was, certainly, on the Ranger's radar. If he heard about this before she was able to get out of there and to a farther spot in Wensley, her end was spelled out for her.

Evelynn quickly slammed the hilt of her own knife against Fenn's knuckles, causing his knife to scatter across the floor. She looked up, eyes cold as winter, into Fenn's astonished ones.

"Right. So. Pay me, or no map. Capiche?" Evelynn said, and Fenn quickly nodded. He got the message - if he messed with Evelynn too much, he probably would be seeing more of the business end of her knife.

Fenn quickly pulled out a small drawstring pouch, which jangled on the table. Evelynn was conscious of the eyes that had watched their knife scuffle going back to whatever they were previously doing. Evelynn noted with satisfaction when she realized that the bag contained the amount they had agreed upon, rather than trying to further circumvent the issue. Clearly, Fenn had been fibbing about having to wait until that night to get the money for it. Evelynn handed over the map and tied the pouch onto her belt, and left before any more could happen between her and Fenn. If she had her way, she was done with the man.

Of course, if she had her way, she would never have another encounter with a Ranger again. Naturally, her way was not the way the universe wanted to go. Evelynn stiffened as she felt an iron-hard grip on her arm, some time after she had left the inn. She didn't bother turning around to see the Ranger, because Evelynn knew he was there.

Except, when Evelynn did turn around, she found herself looking up at a girl.


	4. Chapter 3

**Okay, so before I begin, thank you to my reviewers, y'all made my day over the last couple weeks! Bio has been stressful, and I've been dealing with some hard things in my life as of late, but I'm really happy I managed to give someone some sort of entertainment with my crappy writing. XD Anyway,**

 **Bob Story Builder: Well... you'll see, in this chapter. :D**

 **Wyatt200gaming: Thank you! I'm happy you like it so far!**

 **And, from chapter one(because I'm a very forgetful person XD sorry guys!),**

 **AreiaCanaid: Thank you, I'm happy my story interests you!**

 **Bob Story Builder: Thanks for the feedback! For clarification, if it's more than, say, a line/sentence or in the middle of a paragraph/single word to give emphasis, yes, italics are flashbacks. Usually, they span at least two or three paragraphs, and that's the absolute minimum length I let them get XD Flashbacks will be pretty common in coming chapters, so this clarification is helpful.**

 **Also, this wasn't relevant the last two chapters, but it becomes so starting in this chapter. Cassandra(Evanlyn) and Horace are now the Queen and King, since this is after The Royal Ranger, and in The Royal Ranger it states that King Duncan is getting worse and worse, and this takes place about eleven or twelve years after the events of The Royal Ranger. I also decided that Maddie would probably decide to stay out of the royal picture, preferring life as a Ranger to that(Which makes sense, re-reading the book), so she is still** ** _not_** **a princess.**

 **Anyway, enough of me rambling. On with the story!**

 **(Disclaimer: I have never been to Australia in my life. I'm not John Flanagan. If I was, there would be a lot more girl Rangers.)**

* * *

 **3**

Evelynn tried and tried to disengage herself from the female Ranger's iron grip, the whole way to the castle. Of course, she failed, since the Ranger's grip was basically iron. She almost got away one time, when she had the bright idea to run her elbow into the Ranger's stomach, but the hesitation had only lasted for a moment, and her grip hadn't loosened enough for Evelynn to free herself from it. So now, Evelynn found herself staring up at the still-forbidding walls of Castle Redmont for the second time in the same number of days.

That was when her opportunity arose. Evelynn remembered her knife, and silently slipped it out and, in the same maneuver she had used on Fenn, whacked the Ranger's knuckles, consequently freeing herself. Evelynn wasted no time in dashing back into town. It was beginning to get busier, and as a result, she managed to blend into the crowds. She looked back briefly, once she was in town, and didn't see the Ranger behind her.

Because she was in front of Evelynn. She ran right into the green-grey clad form of the Ranger, and more importantly, dazed for a moment too long. Her knife skidded from its sheath across the street, and kicked by the Ranger out of Evelynn's reach. _Damn it,_ Evelynn thought, as she looked at it nervously. Then her gaze went back up to the Ranger as she spoke.

"That was quite a risky move there." She commented, no hint of humor or… frankly, anything, in her voice. Evelynn gulped, not saying anything. The Ranger easily picked Evelynn up, and moved to the edge of Wensley, closer to the woods than to Castle Redmont. Evelynn was confused. Where was this strange, female Ranger taking her? Then the Ranger's voice grew obviously serious.

"So." Evelynn gulped slightly at this further change in mood as she was put down, spun around, and grabbed on the shoulders with that iron-tight grip. "What were you doing in the castle last night?"

Evelynn searched her brain for an answer, and maybe hoped silence would give the Ranger the idea that Evelynn hadn't been there. Of course, it didn't work. Looking up into the shadowed face of the mysterious female Ranger, Evelynn felt there would be no pity there.

"I… was carrying out a job," Evelynn answered, truthfully. It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't a detailed explanation of her presence in the castle. By all technicalities, it answered the Ranger's question.

"What type of job?" The Ranger prompted. Evelynn wasn't sure how to respond, without getting badly reprimanded. The last thing she wanted was to have to go back to the castle.

" … I… I was…" Evelynn racked her brain for some less-incriminating, but truthful, way to state the answer.

"You were?"

"Looking for a map," Evelynn eventually said.

"A map?" Evelynn could hear the slight undertone of interest in the Ranger's voice.

"Y-yes, ma'am…"

"Do you still have this map?"

Evelynn shook her head. She had already accepted she was going to get in trouble for this.

"That was my job. I needed to find the map, for this guy…" Evelynn trailed off, wondering if it was a good idea or not to mention Fenn. He had shown that he could be a dangerous adversary if in the right - or, rather, the wrong - circumstances.

"What guy?"

"...His name's Fenn Yuman. I… don't know anything else, though."

She heard the Ranger curse. This surprised Evelynn. What was so important about Fenn for the Ranger to know?

"Do you know where he is?"

"Last I saw him, he was… at the inn," Evelynn said, deciding it would be a better choice to simply be honest after trying to come up with some sort of half-truth. She also noted that her escapades of the previous night were finally catching up with her. Most of it was starting to blur into one massive entry of running around the castle and dealing with Fenn. And the Ranger, of course.

"Damn. He's probably long-gone by now." The Ranger glanced down at the pouch at Evelynn's side. "He give you that?"

"Well, as I said, it was a job… he paid me to find the map." Evelynn decided not to mention that part of that job was to bring it to him, as it seemed fairly clear to the Ranger.. She looked deep in thought. Evelynn decided to take the risk of asking why Fenn was of such interest to her.

"Um… if you don't mind my asking, but…" Evelynn started. The Ranger tilted her head to indicate she was listening. "Why do you want to know about Fenn so badly?"

The Ranger sighed. But didn't answer Evelynn's question, she noted with mild annoyance.

"Well… I need to at least check the inn before sending Will word that Yuman has a map… and I can't leave you be…" The Ranger was saying, mostly to herself, but watching Evelynn. "Wouldn't help matters if you warned him that he was under interest from a Ranger. So… guess you're coming." Evelynn sighed in resignation. She would probably be forced to follow the Ranger around all day, drawing glances - not to mention driving away any business prospects she may have still had in Wensley. Time to move on, after all this blows over.

If it ever did blow over. Somehow, Evelynn doubted that this new Ranger would be letting Evelynn out of her sights for long, if at all. She sighed in resignation. This would be a long day.

"What's your name, by the way?" The Ranger spoke up, shaking Evelynn out of her thoughts.

"Um…" Evelynn weighed the pros and cons of having a Ranger know her name. Or, at least, what Evelynn knew of her name. "Evelynn." That was all she knew. No last name, no parents - nothing. The Ranger covered her surprised look quickly, but it wasn't missed by Evelynn.

"Evelynn, huh? I'm Madelyn, Maddie for short. Come on, then."

They reached the inn, Maddie leading Evelynn with a slightly - only slightly - lighter grip on her arm. Evelynn was still pretty sure it would be bruised by the next morning, however. It was still too tight to pull out of. As Maddie has predicted, however, Fenn was nowhere in sight - clearly, after getting the map into his hands, he had left Wensley in a hurry. It had been barely an hour since Evelynn had seen him last. She was still wondering why the map was so important to the Rangers - Evelynn had told Maddie somewhere along the trip that Fenn had said he just wanted it for sailing safety, for a trading mission. Maddie had stayed silent, once more dodging the question of why she was after Fenn in particular. It seemed that Evelynn would never know that particular piece of information.

After looking all over Wensley for Fenn, they gave up the trial, and Maddie began to make her way back the way they had come. Evelynn could tell just from her manner that she was annoyed. There must be something about Fenn in particular that Maddie was stressed about, and Evelynn was beginning to doubt whether it had been a wise choice to take the job from him. She had, seemingly, landed herself into a much larger mess than she was prepared to take on. She was only fourteen, after all. In a couple of days, that number would change to fifteen. Still too young for most people to have to be dealing with Rangers and their missions. She had been doing it since she was five.

 _The cool, sharp night air, mixed with the scent of pine needles, usually calmed down five-year-old Evelynn. Usually, that is. But this time, things were different. This time, she had no one to go back to, no way to let her life go back to normal. She had two choices open to her now - go to a ward and live out the rest of her life in that way, with even just small snippets about her past to remind her of her loss, or allow herself the calming solitude of the forest, running from those who had done this to her. Find some way to survive there. Hunt, camp, steal. A more natural life, free from the restraints of social obligations. That sounded more to her tune, anyway._

 _She heard, faintly, the sounds of grass moving, trees rustling, the occasional pine cone dropping to the ground. She didn't want to go back, where she knew she had no one left for her. Where people would feel unrelenting pity for her, for her loss of family. She preferred solitude. Empty, joyful solitude. Alone with her thoughts, feelings, and wit._

 _She swung up into a tree and held stock-still, willing the tears to stay back. She watched through teary, blurry eyes as a large, bulky form dashed through the trees, clearly looking for her. How funny it was that people barely ever thought to look up, she thought. They missed the most obvious hiding spots, the most obvious hiders in them. No, looking up was not natural. Down was. Because down, there is solid, unchanging Earth. Up, there's sky, endless and free - and unknown. The unknown scares people. Evelynn felt that she knew that much about human nature._

 _As she waited for the figure to pass, she found she fell asleep, managing to stay unnoticed in the tree for the remainder of the night._

They came up upon a cabin. Nestled in the quiet of the woods, close enough to the edge to be able to get to Wensley with some speed but not so far in sight that it would be visible unless you were looking for it. It seemed the picture of a happy cabin in the woods, the inhabitants untroubled by anything. Evelynn knew better. She knew that this was a Ranger's home, one located in every fief. She had run across this one multiple times in her runs through the forest. Away from the Ranger who lived there, Evelynn thought with amusement. It seemed counterintuitive to do this, as that may just make it easier for her to be found. The Ranger could simply get his - or, apparently, her - horse and chase after her at a quicker speed.

Leaving Evelynn within easy access, Maddie went around to the stables by the back, and came out on a black and white horse. Maddie leaned over and whispered something into the horse's ear, at which the horse shook their head (Evelynn was done assuming the gender of anything remotely related to Rangers). Maddie pulled Evelynn onto the horse's back.

"This is Bumper." Maddie said. Evelynn just nodded. This was all quite strange for her to be getting herself into.

"Out of curiosity… where are we going?" Evelynn asked, once she realized that they were not going back to Wensley - rather, going in the opposite direction.

"Castle Araluen," Maddie answered simply.

"Why…?"

Maddie didn't answer. This was getting increasingly infuriating. And then she stopped. And turned back around to the cabin. No, this wasn't just infuriating - it was downright confusing.

"What, pray tell, are we doing now?" Evelynn prompted.

"Will and Queen Cassandra aren't leaving for Skandia for another couple of months." Was all Maddie supplied Evelynn with.

"This is relevant… because…?"

"You're going to need time to practice."

"Why…?"

Maddie didn't answer for a few minutes.

"Because you're starting Ranger training. Right now."

* * *

 **Yay! Sorry if Maddie was a bit OOC there at the end. I had a little trouble with that particular scene. Also, until the great reveal of Evelynn's backstory(I've already written it so there can be no changes), I will be willing to give a couple paragraphs of a sneak-peak to the next chapter in a PM to anyone who can guess correctly. At the very least, guess parts of it correctly! I'm really proud of this.**

 **Also, I may be updating more regularly - I'm currently writing chapter 20 and I'm super excited about this story, so Wednesday updates should be something to look out for, though those could possibly be sporadic, depending if writer's block decides to strike me from the abyss. So far, it's left me alone for the most part, but some scenes have been becoming increasingly difficult to write, so I'm a tiny bit worried. However, as I said, I have 19 chapters fully written and I'm working on the 20th, so I think I'm in safe waters in regards to update ammo. Even with regular Wednesday updates, I'll probably be able to make it through the month of February, and I have an hour and a half free period to write at school(lots of it has already been written there), so I might actually finish it before my college course starts on the 5th using weekends and school time XD**

 **Anyway, enough rambling, hope you enjoyed the chapter! Byee!**


	5. Chapter 4

**Dear goodness, this story is finally taking off. Reviews!  
AreiaCananaid(Guest): Yep! Also, I didn't really consider that, I was mostly writing off the top of my head XD I guess you're right, but idk what I can do about it. . **

**Disclaimer: My name doesn't begin with a J. This doesn't rule out a lot of names, but it does rule out John.**

* * *

 **4**

"...What?"

"Please tell me I didn't pick a deaf apprentice."

"Um...no, I'm not deaf. Just… confused."

"Then let me explain, instead of going on with more questions."

Evelynn shut her mouth.

"I'm going to start training you as a Ranger. Meaning that you're going to need time to practice skills I teach you. Since telling Will about Yuman getting a map isn't going to be an immediate problem for another month, you should probably learn a few skills, at the very least."

"Um…"

They came back to the cabin's front, and Maddie got Evelynn to get off of Bumper's back, before returning him to the stables behind the house. She came back around, and let Evelynn and herself into the house.

"So uh… what… exactly do you do?" Evelynn asked.

"I'm a Ranger," Maddie said.

"Erm… what do Rangers do, then?"

Maddie's face looked thoughtful for a moment, and Evelynn decided that she may have made a tactical error with her wording.

"Rangers - well, Ranger's apprentices - do housework." Maddie's face was absolutely straight as she finally pushed back the cowl of her cloak, revealing blonde hair that fell down her shoulders now and piercing green eyes.

"...What?"

Maddie rattled off a list of tasks and where the tools that Evelynn would need to carry said tasks out were in the house. Evelynn found herself, after midday, still scrambling to finish the list.

* * *

It hadn't occurred to Maddie why Will had taken so much glee in having her scramble about with housework on her first day, other than to spite her for her comments about her maid coming down. Or that he had simply been in a bad mood. Now, however, seven years after graduating, she finally understood.

She had written to Gilan, the Ranger Corps Commandant, about Evelynn after Maddie had first seen the girl.

 _The girl had slunk, practically noiselessly, out of the forest and into Wensley, and into the blacksmith's house not long after. She was also quite hard to spot - if you weren't actively looking for movement, you likely wouldn't have spotted her. In a town that had been at peace for years, it was no surprise that no one was up, looking specifically for thieves. Even with Maddie filling in for Will while he was at Castle Araluen preparing to go to Skandia, to assist Queen Cassandra with her negotiations with the Skandian Oberjarl, Erak, the town was peaceful. Thieves were, overall, discouraged by the presence of a Ranger. Maddie would have thought very little of it, had the girl not been clearly young. There was no way she could be older than fifteen, at the oldest._

 _Maddie watched, from the shadows, for the majority of the time while the girl had been inside of the blacksmith's house. She would intervene once she came back out, Maddie had decided. She had moved, noiselessly and practically invisible, to a wall across from the door the girl had unlocked, trusting her Ranger cloak to conceal her from the girl when she re-emerged. She had pulled her cowl up over her head, further concealing her body._

 _The girl finally came back out, carrying a small bag that clicked together in the way that precious materials did. Maddie grabbed the girl by the hood of the black cloak she wore, pulling it back and down. It revealed a short head of auburn hair, the stray pine needle or twig stuck in it. To Maddie's amusement, it looked as though she had cut it herself with a knife, not unlike how Will had described Halt's hair during his apprenticeship (and, likely, to this day). It was clear that she hadn't had an opportunity to clean herself properly for a long while - potentially months. Her face had dirt covering it in a fine dust, darkening her skin from a complexion that Maddie guessed would be rather bright if it weren't covered in dirt - and rather startled. Her dark brown eyes - not unlike Will's, Maddie noted - darted about, alert, and searching for a route of escape. Her clothing wasn't in much better shape._

 _To Maddie's surprise, the girl simply ducked out of her cloak and dashed away. It revealed a set of four small throwing knives at her belt - Maddie fingered her own subconsciously, as if to ensure it was still there - and a longer hunting knife. Maddie released the abandoned cloak, knowing that it would likely serve as more of a dead weight than anything useful, and gave chase._

 _Later that night, after Maddie had sufficiently lost the girl in the twisting streets of Wensley, she had returned home - technically, it was Will's, but she was keeping an eye on Redmont until he came back from Skandia - and wrote her letter to Gilan. A few weeks later, she got a letter back, telling her that he approved of Maddie's choice._

Thinking back, Maddie wondered how Halt had singled out Will from the Redmont Ward for his apprentice. She made a mental note to ask the next time she visited either him or her parents.

* * *

Evelynn had finally finished the list of tasks Maddie had given her. Maddie waved her inside, and Evelynn sat down at the table at Maddie's instruction. Maddie poured herself some coffee, and then sat down across from Evelynn, mixing honey in. Evelynn looked at the drink dubiously. She had never been a big fan of coffee, and wondered how that aspect of Ranger life would play out.

Maddie slid a piece of paper across the table to her, and nodded at it. Evelynn looked at it.

"It's a map," Evelynn stated.

"Yes. A map of where?" Maddie asked, and Evelynn looked back down to the map.

"Araluen."

"True. Just Araluen?"

"No."

"Right."

Their night went on like this, question and answer about the map. Sometime near the end, Evelynn got up the courage to ask why they were doing this exercise.

"Maps are important. If there was, say, an exiled warlord," Maddie pointed to a spot on the map labeled 'Mountains of Rain and Night', "who was planning to take over Araluen, what would be important to know?"

Evelynn thought for a moment. It seemed like an unlikely scenario, but really, with the turn her life had taken, Evelynn was prepared to accept it.

"Where he could get an army to begin with," Evelynn stated. Maddie broke into a smile.

"Well, that would be a good thing to know, wouldn't it? Okay, let's say that he has an army, in the mountains with him."

"Okay… well, in that case… you'd want to know where he could attack from," Evelynn answered. Maddie nodded.

"Right. And if he has allies."

"Allies?"

"Other people who will help you if you get into a fight with another country - or, in this scenario, with someone from inside the country."

"Right. They'd probably attack from somewhere else, too," Evelynn said.

"Probably."

"Did this happen?" Evelynn asked. "I mean, did this scenario actually happen?"

Maddie nodded.

"Were you there?"

"No. My mentor was, though. At the time, of course, he was just an apprentice." Maddie reflected on the many stories that Will had told her. Oh, how wrong that time in his life had gone.

"What happened?"

"Well, my mentor was…" how to phrase this… "Stuck in Skandia at the time, but his best friend, Horace Altman -"

"You know Horace Altman?" Evelynn's eyes were large with awe. Maddie raised an eyebrow, an expression she had learned from Will - and, likely, by extension Halt.

"Yes. Do you want to hear the story or not," Maddie said. Evelynn shut her mouth, cutting back the question that had been about to emerge. Maddie was suddenly wracked with sympathy for Will's pain in dealing with her endless torrent of questions during her apprenticeship. Evelynn nodded to answer.

"Well, Horace was just an apprentice at the time as well, but he had challenged the rebel warlord, Morgarath, to a one-on-one duel. Morgarath had been a great swordsman, and didn't play by the rules of chivalry, yet Horace still won - while playing by the rules."

"What was your mentor doing in Skandia at the time? A special meeting with the King, like now?"

Maddie looked at Evelynn's eager face. Oh, how times had changed, she realized. During her mother's own lifetime, the Skandians had gone from dangerous enemies to close allies. Thanks to an apprentice. Astounding.

"No, he wasn't. I can tell you about my mentor's history after we finish this." Maddie said, putting an end - though temporary - to the discussion that Evelynn had been so riveted on. Even if she forgot about this particular event, they would be going over a number of Will's escapades, seeing as how he was a large factor in a number of Araluen's important moments. Come to think of it, she might be involved in a part of it, given how she was the first female Ranger in the Corps. Maybe not in official lessons, but at the Gathering… Maddie was getting sidetracked. Their lesson continued, until dinner (where Evelynn had proved that she was, apparently, able to cook, at least to a minor degree). After that, both Ranger and apprentice went to bed.

The next week went on much the same way, until Maddie decided to start weapons training, and silent movement basics. Evelynn followed Maddie out to a clearing near the house, where Maddie put down a cluster of objects wrapped in cloth. Evelynn looked at it curiously.

"What's in there?" She asked, earning a silence from Maddie. She felt that Maddie was trying to tell her something, but she wasn't sure what. Maddie pulled up a green-grey cloak, not unlike Maddie's, and gave it to Evelynn.

"Your Ranger cloak," Maddie said. Then went on. "Today, we're going over- are you listening to me?"

Evelynn's eyes shot up from the mottled pattern of her cloak.

"Yes."

"Good. Because this is important. We're going over the weapons that you're going to be using from now on."

Evelynn's curiosity was piqued. Maddie held up a strange-looking bow - not a longbow, but a bow that had a little dip in the middle.

"This is called a recurve bow. New apprentices use it to learn the skills before they have the strength to pull back a full longbow." Maddie put it down, and held up a piece of leather with a string connected to it and a small pouch, the contents clinking together like metal of some sort.

"Female Rangers also start out with a sling. With practice, it can be just as quick as a bow - and just as dangerous." She put down the pouch and sling, and held up a leather sheath - no, double sheath of some sort, Evelynn amended as she saw the two knife hilts sticking out of the leather holding.

"These are a Ranger's standard dual knives." She pulled one out from the sheath. "This is a throwing knife. It's weighed more at the tip, to make it spin in the air, and hit an opponent." She re-sheathed it, and pulled out the second knife. "This is a saxe knife." It was large enough to be something of a short sword, Evelynn thought.

"Is it sharp?" Evelynn asked.

"Very."

"Can I hold it?"

"Don't touch the blade."

Evelynn cradled the hilt of the weapon in her hand, looking with interest at the blade.

"Just how sharp… _ouch!_ "

Maddie rushed to Bumper, who she had brought along in the case of mishaps and who carried the medical kit, and pulled it out of his saddlebags. Evelynn was fighting the urge to put her bleeding finger in her mouth, and had dropped the knife onto the ground. _I guess that it's that sharp,_ Evelynn thought with annoyance.

Maddie quickly tended to it, noting that the cut wasn't deep enough to require stitches. _At the very least,_ Maddie thought, _she was gentle with it._

They put the saxe knife back after they had cleaned it, and left the knives be for the rest of the day. Maddie was wondering if she should have waited another week before introducing the sharp weapons to Evelynn.

* * *

 **I'm not gonna lie, I got the idea for the bit at the end there from reading TrustTheCloak's stories, but I can't remember the name of the one the idea came from. Anyway, thanks for that burst of inspiration!**

 **Once again, I'm still letting you guys guess at Evelynn's backstory. This will probably end at chapter 11. Wait, let me alter that - it will end at chapter 11. Yeah. Once again, if you can guess any signifigant part of Evelynn's backstory that hasn't already been told in the story, I will send you a private message with the first, say, 100 words of the next chapter. ^-^**

 **Also, I almost forgot. I changed my mind about Wednesday updates - this story will stick to Saturdays, since I'm working on another story that's going to use Wednesday updates. Sorry for any confusion this week on that!  
~Girly**


	6. Chapter 5

**I'm sorry this is late! Fanfiction wouldn't let me upload on Saturday, and then I started watching Ouran High School Host Club and Sword Art Online and forgot about it on Sunday... please forgive me! Anyway, now I do have the chapter, but apologies since it's short... anyway, reviews!**

 **AreiaCananaid: Thanks! I'll probably do that once I come up with a progression of events for that chapter that don't alter the ending.**

 **Disclaimer: I'm not a guy, therefore, I am not John Flanagan.**

* * *

 **5**

Evelynn was fairly excited, because today, Maddie was taking her to get her own Ranger horse.

Before that point, whenever Maddie needed to take Evelynn anywhere, it was usually within a walking distance, sometimes with Maddie on Bumper. Evelynn wasn't sure why she couldn't just ride Bumper herself before, but she realized soon enough that there was a reason.

Today, Evelynn and Maddie were walking somewhere Evelynn hadn't been before. Evelynn had asked repeatedly why there was a special need for her to have a specific type of horse, only to be met with Maddie's now-typical silence to certain questions. Maybe Maddie was expecting Evelynn to puzzle out the issue for herself. She wasn't quite sure.

They came out into a clearing, a set of structures making it out to Evelynn to be a rather secretive stable and pasture. The location puzzled her. Why was it in the woods? Usually, they were in more accessible locations, like in town or at the castle. Maybe this was a special one. Evelynn had no way of telling unless she asked, and she got the feeling she would be ignored if she did.

An older man walked out of one of the stable structures, and Maddie greeted him.

"Hello, Young Bob," she called, and Evelynn looked up at her. _Young_ Bob? No offense to the man in question, but he was certainly not young.

"'Ello, young Maddie. 'Ow's Bumper doin'?" He called back. The horse in question slammed his nose - gently - into the back of Evelynn's head. So _that's_ where he got the name. She had been wondering.

"Good as ever."

Young Bob came over to the two of them. Evelynn's opinion that his name was not, truly, based upon his age was reinforced further.

"Who's this?" He asked Maddie.

"Evelynn."

"Ah, so this's that new apprentice a' yours." He looked Evelynn up and down. "So, bet yer here for a horse," he said.

"Yes, sir," Evelynn said. She assumed that was why Maddie had brought her through the forest today, anyway.

"Make a good Ranger, she will. Polite, calls me 'sir'," Young Bob commented with a laugh. Maddie merely raised her eyebrow. "Yes, yes, I 'ear ya. Let me go get 'er," he said, walking off back towards the stable. Evelynn was strangely aware of his bowlegged gait.

When he came back around, it was with a black horse with white spots covering its body, led on a rope. Young Bob, and the horse, stopped once he had returned. The horse was rather small, more of a pony size, and with a somewhat shaggy coat. Their dark, brown eyes were closer to black than brown, and they looked quite alert.

"'Er name's Midnight," Young Bob told Evelynn. Evelynn looked into Midnight's eyes, and they seemed to sparkle playfully. A thought appeared to strike Maddie.

"Evelynn, can you ride?"

"Er… a little." She wasn't going to admit that the small amount of experience she had was from stealing horses. She reminded herself that she wasn't in that business anymore, but it likely wouldn't look good if she admitted that in front of a Ranger. Maddie remembered her own first time on the back of Bumper, and struggled slightly to keep her straight face.

"Why don' you try ridin' Midnight here? She's a steady 'un," Young Bob said. Evelynn looked to Maddie.

"Well, if you really think it's a good idea, go for it," Maddie said. Her smile was well-hidden.

However, as soon as Evelynn was seated, she realized it was a mistake. Midnight twisted, kicked, and bucked until Evelynn went flying, head first, did a completely unintentional aerial somersault, and landed on her back. _Hard._ She heard Young Bob's laugh and realized that his forgetting to tell her about that particular stunt was, certainly, intentional. She sat up, rubbing her back, and saw that Maddie's eyes twinkled, and she was smiling. Maddie, clearly, had also known this trick.

"Worked 'bout as well as it 'id on ye, Maddie," Young Bob commented. Maddie nodded. Evelynn glared, first at Maddie, then at Young Bob.

"You knew," She accused Maddie. She shrugged.

"Keeps you on your toes," she commented. Evelynn redirected her glare once more.

"Mighty funny, at that," Young Bob added. The stare, once more, redirected.

Midnight seemed to agree with Young Bob's point of view.

"Of course, that tactic keeps them from being stolen," Maddie added, and Evelynn's glare turned to a look of intrigue.

"How so?"

"Well, Ranger horses have a codeword. You can't ride them without it," Maddie said. "Bumper here's is 'don't break me'."

"Well, what's Midnight's?"

"'Er's is 'starry ink'," Young Bob said. Evelynn was confused.

"'Starry ink'?" She said.

"Not ta me, to tha 'orse!"

Evelynn tried it, and lo and behold, when she re-mounted Midnight, she didn't get thrown off violently. Or, really, thrown off at all.

"Now, I gotta show ya 'er commands," Young Bob said, and led both Evelynn and Midnight away, into the pasture.

Maddie watched, not wanting to have to wait until Will got back, or she went off running to save him from seafaring assassins, to tell him about the repeat event of horse-beats-Ranger that happens so often with new apprentices.


	7. Chapter 6

**Heya, Sunday upload because I was out basically all day yesterday, sooo... yeah. Reviews!**

 **hopeweaver19: So I wasn't the only one! Huh! Well, glad you enjoyed it anyhow!**

 **Bob Story Builder: Maddie more mature yay! Also... well...**

 **AreiaCananaid: Thanks! Glad you're enjoying it!**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Ranger's Apprentice... I can't think of any witty remark to add to this. Ah, well.**

 **On with the story!**

 **6**

The months between the start of Evelynn's Ranger training and the point where Maddie was getting excessively nervous about riding out and warning Will about the map incident had sped by. During that time, Evelynn's connection with Midnight and her Ranger training were quite well underway. Now, Evelynn watched as Maddie saddled and unsaddled Bumper, as if deciding whether to go warn Will today or some other time.

The choice was made for her. The horses gave a friendly greeting to an approaching horse, and then the quick, noiseless figure of another Ranger seemed to pop from the ground - literally - to Evelynn, startling her immensely. It seemed to faze Maddie less so, however.

"Hello, Gilan. What brings you here?" Maddie asked. Gilan, who lowered his cowl, looked mock-hurt.

"Maddie, can't I come and say hi every now and again?"

"Not with all that paperwork I hear you complaining about endlessly, no."

Gilan frowned.

"Fine, fine. You got me." Gilan took notice of Evelynn just then.

"Newest in the line of apprentices, huh?" Gilan commented. Maddie raised an eyebrow.

"You realize that apprentices are a natural part of life in Araluen, yes?"

"Ah, but there's the difference. In a way, all of us were apprenticed to Halt."

Maddie sighed.

"No. I'm sorry, Gilan, but I'm pretty sure that's not how that kind of thing works."

"But isn't it? Think about it. I was apprenticed to Halt, and then Will was. You were apprenticed to Will, and now Evelynn is apprenticed to you. It all goes back to Halt."

"I feel like you're trying to find a way to share the suffering you faced during your own apprenticeship."

"No! Of course not!" Gilan looked mock-hurt again, before it morphed into a smile. "But, Maddie, you're not going to tell me that Will's habits didn't go down to you."

"I wouldn't go so far as to say we have the same habits. Some of my current techniques are the same, yes, if that's what you're getting at."

"Ah! Will got all _those_ habits from _Halt._ "

Maddie frowned. She had someone to blame for her housework suffering, now, other than Will. Of course, he had still made her do it, so she could blame both of them.

"Gilan, can you just explain why you came here?"

"Alright, Maddie, impatient young one." Maddie raised an eyebrow to this, but kept her mouth closed. "Your dad is having another onset of stress, and none of us - I mean, not me, not your mom, not Halt, not Lady Pauline, not even Will - can get him to calm down."

"This involves me...how? I'm a Ranger, not a diplomat."

"No, no no no no. I was thinking you could go _with_ them to Skandia, too-"

"No."

"What?"

Maddie sighed. "I still need to go to Castle Araluen, but I'm not going to Skandia with them."

"Did something happen?" Gilan's easygoing nature turned serious suddenly.

"Yuman got a map."

Evelynn, for her part, watched this exchange with utter oblivion, having less than no idea what they were talking about.

Maddie and Evelynn found themselves on the road an hour later. Gilan had gone ahead, seeing as how he was already set to go. Evelynn finally decided to try to get an answer about their overall stress level about the map once more.

"Maddie?"

Maddie inclined her head to show she was listening.

"What's so problematic about Fenn having a map…?"

Maddie sighed. "I guess, if you're coming along, you might as well know now. Fenn Yuman is the leader of an influential Skandian rebel group that has been trying to break the alliance between Araluen and Skandia for years. Erak, the Oberjarl and a close friend of the royal family, was worried about the murmurings he had been hearing. That's why Will's going. I think the Queen's just being stubborn." Maddie said it with a mixture of annoyance and amusement that gave Evelynn the distinct impression that Maddie was familiar with these antics.

"Why was the map so important? He seemed to know an awful lot about the trip when I first talked to him."

"Yuman has a web of spies, apparently. That's another part of Erak's call - he caught one. That's how he knew so much. The map was supposed to be secret, so that possible assassins - such as Yuman - never got the opportunity to ambush them. At least, without it being a total accident, and they'll still be on guard for such an event. Still… from behind, keeping the same course, could be problematic."

"So, if the map was such an issue months ago…"

"Why didn't I try to get it back? Frankly, it was because of you."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. Did I say someone else? I highly doubt it," Maddie said, the words faintly reminding her of both Will and Halt. Maybe Gilan had a point, she thought.

"Right. Um… why?"

"Because, if you haven't noticed by this point, Ranger training is very, very time-consuming - for mentor and apprentice both. I couldn't leave you be for weeks to hunt down a guy who likely is already back in Skandia to reclaim a map."

"Already in Skandia!?"

"He got the map, he must have moved out of Wensley, Redmont, and probably Araluen rather quickly."

"How are you going to keep Will and the Queen safe?"

Maddie sighed. "Probably, by taking Gilan's advice. Going on that damned ship with them."

 _Maddie wouldn't have known that she was seasick if she hadn't decided that she wanted to go with her dad to Nihon-Ja the last time he went. It had seemed like such a brilliant idea at the time, and Nihon-Ja and Araluen were allies, especially after they had helped stop the rebel uprising against Shigeru years prior. Will and her parents had all decided that there would be no drastic danger, especially if she stayed close to Horace or some trusted Nihon-Jan such as Emperor Shigeru, so they had let her go._

 _The biggest danger she faced on the entire trip was the ocean. It was calm to most, especially if they traveled by sea often, as Horace did. As a plus, Horace was not seasick, so Maddie had no idea why she was. That aside, she realized well and truly why Halt never, ever went on boats, unless it was a matter of national security and it was absolutely necessary. Maddie made a mental note to not tease Halt about his seasickness again, she thought, as the ship rocked, setting off another wave of nausea. This was nothing but pain and suffering, and she never wanted to experience it again._

 _Horace came belowdeck to check on Maddie. He hadn't seen her in a few hours, and was beginning to get worried. When he opened the door, however, he backed up and closed it again. He knew from experience that it was never a good idea to interact with someone dealing with seasickness. Halt had drummed that lesson into his head plenty of times during their adventures together, before Maddie was born. He made his own mental note, this one being to tell Will about Maddie's seasickness. That would be a good thing to know, in case he unknowingly brought her on a boat over the ocean before Horace managed to warn him. That would not be pleasant in the slightest._

 _The boat continued to rock, setting off waves of nausea for Maddie, the whole trip to Nihon-Ja. Once they returned to Araluen soil, Maddie swore to never get on another boat, ever again._

Maddie's face was creased into a never-ending frown for the rest of the trip, making Evelynn wonder what the problem was. Surely, boats couldn't be _that_ bad, right?

 **Maddie being seasick is my personal headcanon. She was never on a boat overseas in the Royal Ranger... so... yeah...**

 **Hope you enjoyed! Things are about to start heating up... this and probably the next chapter are going to be the last chapters where things are pretty calm, so... prepare yourselves for that.**


	8. Chapter 7

**Hey. I'm sick. Fuuuunnnn! (not.) But uh... that doesn't stop writing... well, posting, anyway... so yeeeeah! Reviews!**

 **hopeweaver19: Oh, I'm so glad! I thought it was an interesting idea and just ran with it XD**

 **AreiaCananaid: Yup, building to the main conflict. Glad you liked that idea!**

 **Disclaimer: Not John Flanagan... no silly thing here, can't think of any.**

 **On with the story:**

 **7**

It was late afternoon when the duo finally reached the castle. When they were stopped by guards, Maddie fished a silver oakleaf pendant on a chain out from under her shirt and the guards stepped back. The guards seemed instantly sorry, and Maddie just waved it off. They left Bumper and Midnight on the side of the moat closer the the castle, and Evelynn gazed up at Castle Araluen in awe. It was majestic, with soaring towers and a peaked top closer to the clouds than to the ground. Evelynn had never seen something so awe-inspiring before in her life.

They went into the castle proper, and Evelynn had to be practically pulled along by Maddie, she kept getting distracted by her surroundings. She had grown up, quite literally, in the forest, the closest castle being Castle Redmont. This was quite a sight for her. The higher they went up the stairs, Evelynn guessed that they were getting closer to their destination. Maddie seemed to know where to go, so Evelynn did her best to simply follow her and not fall behind. As a castle, Evelynn guessed that if she fell behind, she might not be able to find her way back for a while.

Maddie knocked on the Ranger Corps Commandant's door, sighing as she heard the ever-cheery "come in!" from Gilan inside. The two of them stepped in, seeing Will already seated in the room. There wasn't much - mostly, Gilan's desk and chairs for the two of them. Something gave Evelynn the distinct impression that this was not intended to be a meeting room.

"I was wondering when you two would finally show up," Gilan said, mock-exasperated. "Will already took the seat, if you two don't mind the floor, I guess…"

Maddie rolled her eyes, as did Will. They were both familiar with the lanky Ranger's antics. Maddie pulled out two boxes from behind Gilan's desk, and she and Evelynn sat on those.

"So, I'm going to make the quick assumption that I know all of you, and have at least met every person in this room," Gilan said, with a quick glance to Evelynn. "For those not introduced, here. Will, this is Maddie's apprentice, Evelynn. Evelynn, this is Maddie's mentor, Will. Also, I think I invited Halt too, because he has some issue with Will going to Skandia still."

Will simply raised an eyebrow at Gilan.

"Right, anyway! He's been stressed, Horace has been stressed, and I've been stressed. I've been stressed mostly because of paperwork, though, so I don't think I count. Oh, right, and the Yuman issue." Gilan's face turned serious. Or, at least, more serious than his easy grin was. "You said you had an update on that, Maddie?"

"Yes, but it's not a good update."

"The map, right?"

"Yeah."

Will cut in then. "Guys, I'm not in this loop. Please, do me a favor and fill me in."

Maddie proceeded to explain to Will the map issue, and his face turned grim.

"Halt won't like this," he said. A deep voice cut in behind them.

"I won't like what?"

Everyone jumped slightly. Gilan and Will recovered first. Clearly, the retired Ranger still retained some of the tricks they were so fond of pulling.

"Remember that thing about going with Cassandra to Skandia, because Erak was worried about a possible equivalent of Arisaka's uprising there?" Will said. Halt nodded slowly, not liking where this was going.

"Well, the leader of that group _may_ or may not have gotten a map outlining our course…" Will continued cautiously. Evelynn wanted to sink into the cardboard box. Halt's silence was more worrying to her than if he had begun yelling.

"Gilan…"

"Don't look at me! It was at Redmont!"

Halt's scarily calm gaze turned onto Maddie. She seemed to want to join Evelynn in her plan to sink into the boxes.

"He was gone by the time I found out, Halt. I have no clue where he could have gone," Maddie said, her calm voice surprising Evelynn. "And, to make sure he _stays_ alive and well, I'll go on the infernal boat. Happy?"

Gilan looked at Maddie in surprise.

"I didn't know you shared Halt's opinion of boats," he said. Maddie glared at him. "Not to say I'm going to make a big deal of it, of course," he added quickly. He had known Halt for longer, and if Maddie took boats the same way he did, he did not want to annoy her about it at all.

"He still went on them when Araluen's security - not to mention Will's - were in danger, if I recall." Will had told Maddie quite a bit about their overseas travels while Halt was on board, to drum into her head not to tease the old, retired Ranger about it.

"I did a lot of things for Will's safety." Halt shrugged. Evelynn got the impression that not all of those things were, perhaps, legal. Oh well, she wasn't really one to judge.

"Besides, Halt, if you forget, I managed to save your life a few times," Will reminded him. Halt merely grunted. "Also, if you've forgotten this part as well, Skandia is an ally. This isn't like it's Erak planning to assassinate me and Cassandra, he's the one who asked for our help."

Halt shot one last look of annoyance at Will before stalking out. The four Rangers in the room watched him leave.

"I guess… that's one way to tell him," Gilan said, trying to lighten the mood. It didn't work very well.

"If I don't come back from this unscathed, he's not going to let me go on any missions that have a high risk of death for months, is he?" Will groaned.

"He's retired, and you're not an apprentice anymore. He can't not let you go on missions," Gilan reminded him. "The story might be different had he accepted the offer of being the Corps Commandant."

"Probably," Will agreed.

"In any case. It would definitely make me feel less nervous if Yuman didn't have a map, but some things can't really be avoided too well, huh?"

"Well, we're not leaving for another couple of weeks. I could try to convince Cassandra to stay here and -" Will started, before Gilan cut him off.

"Cassandra isn't going to change her mind. You know that as well as the rest of us, if not better. She's also very smart, so I highly doubt that a little thing like risk of assassination is going to change her mind." Gilan said. Will sighed, realizing the fact.

"Maybe I have some of Halt's worry about Skandia, or he just radiates it so far that it's starting to alter my judgement," Will joked. "All joking aside, though, you're probably right. I'll just have to make sure she brings her sling, that Horace comes, and that she agrees to go as Evanlyn."

"She might agree to that."

"She better, or she's not coming."

"You realize you can't tell her that, right?"

Gilan and Will argued about the Queen's stubbornness for a while, before they agreed to just leave it be until morning. As Maddie and Evelynn were led to their quarters while they stayed at Castle Araluen, Maddie was clearly stressed. Evelynn couldn't help but feel as though she were the perpetrator of such feelings, as she was the one who had initially taken the map from Castle Redmont.

"You realize that there was no way to know that a map could cause this much havoc at the time, right?" Maddie interjected, seeming to sense Evelynn's thought process.

"I guess…"

"I only told you about the issue today, Evelynn."

"Still, if I hadn't accepted the offer, we wouldn't be in this situation," Evelynn pointed out.

"Right, but you didn't know why it was such a big deal at the time."

Truthfully, that wasn't entirely what Evelynn was beating herself up about. She had known that there was something off about how Fenn was acting, how he kept referring to a group of people instead of just himself, and about his interest in a map. Evelynn was mad that she hadn't been wise enough to confront him about it before taking the job. She had never wanted to cause any harm, she was just trying to do what she had to to survive. She couldn't help but feel that, if Fenn's plan went all the way through to its intended end, she'd have had a large hand in that. A hand she had never wanted to play in the first place.

 **The next chapter is gonna be kinda short... and my writing may not make much sense in it... so yeah. But uh, we're building up to the main conflict in this story, so yay! I'm gonna say that there's about... let's see... four chapters until things start getting really tense. Funny, there's also four chapters left to guess on Evelynn's backstory, since that's when it comes to light... hmmm...**

 **Anyway, yeah, hope y'all enjoyed this! Bye!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Sorry this is almost late! I got... a little distracted... sorry... Um, anyway! Reviews!**

 **Guest: Thank you!**

 **hopeweaver19: I'm glad!**

 **AreiaCananaid: Thanks a lot, character interactions actually had me kinda nervous writing that one. Glad I could make you smile!**

 **Disclaimer: I'm not John Flanagan. Still can't think of any witty additions.**

 **8**

The weeks passed by quickly, and soon the Queen(currently under the pseudonym Evanlyn), Maddie, Will, Horace, and Evelynn were on a boat bound for Skandia. Not long after they had left port, Maddie had disappeared belowdeck. Evelynn chose - wisely - not to bother her. At least, after Will had explained the issue to her, and how much of a bad idea it was to disturb a seasick Ranger. Evelynn quickly realized he was speaking from experience, and left Maddie be until she got up the ability to return to the rest of the group above.

Evelynn watched with interest as the waves rolled by. It was spring, and Will said that they would have had problems if it were just a few months later, during summer. Once more, he appeared to be speaking from personal experience, so Evelynn heeded his words in the case that a time arose when she actually needed to know about it. It was a nice day, and there wasn't a sign of a storm as far as Evelynn could see. Along with that, there wasn't another boat for that far, so Evelynn decided that maybe Fenn had lost the map and they were home free.

Until about halfway through the trip, when Maddie had finally come back up, her temper clearly at a shorter fuse than it had been before. Evelynn guessed that Maddie just really, truly hated boats, and left her be. So did the rest of the people who had some inkling of what was good for them. Evelynn had been watching Will and the Queen - er, Evanlyn - catching up when she noticed a shape behind them that certainly wasn't there before. She climbed back down to the deck from the watch she had been keeping in the crow's nest to let the others know.

Maddie still wanted to be left alone, that much was clear, so she steered herself in Will and Evanlyn's direction.

"Uhm, excuse me…?" Evelynn said, her voice quiet. She was a little nervous about interrupting a conversation between the Queen and Will. They both looked at her with interest.

"What's that?" Evelynn pointed to the shape, which was certainly getting more clear - and closer. Will took one look at it and turned back to Evelynn.

"Get Maddie," he told her, and Evelynn rushed to do as he had instructed. Maddie, though clearly annoyed at the ocean and the boat, put her discomfort aside and rushed belowdecks to get her weapons.

The ship - Evelynn could clearly make it out now - was approaching quickly. Will told something to Maddie, and Evelynn caught the word 'wolfship'. Her heart sank to her stomach. Fenn hadn't lost the map, and now she was angry at herself for letting it happen. As Evelynn watched, it came within firing distance, and she watched in surprise as, between Will and Maddie, the forms of people she could see on the deck of the approaching ship were shot - not in a fatal spot, but to put them out of commission. Evelynn, feeling utterly useless, turned around from watching Maddie and Will.

And saw another wolfship coming, from the other direction. They were stuck, in between two wolfships, both Rangers focused on the first ship. That was the plan, Evelynn realized. The ship they were shooting at currently was, more or less, a decoy ship, designed to distract them from the more dangerous of the two. Although, since when have enemy ships ever not been dangerous? Evelynn shook herself out of her thoughts, realizing with a start that she had to tell Will and Maddie about the new ship. But without distracting them… she had no idea what would happen if they were distracted. She certainly didn't want to find out through practice.

The second wolfship was getting closer and closer by the minute, and Evelynn was panicking. She had no idea what she was supposed to do, so she simply stood there, clueless and worried.

It was Horace who had noticed the terrified apprentice Ranger first. His eyes followed her apparent line of sight, and a cold feeling gripped his heart. There was a _second_ wolfship, and clearly, it wasn't friendly. He pulled Will away from his task, and pointed out the new ship to him. Will's gaze hardened, and he told Horace to stay and assist Maddie in any way he could. Horace wasn't sure how he could help, so he kept an eye out for any more surprise ships.

Evelynn was relieved to see Will dash up, silent as ever, and begin to rapidly injure any Skandian within his longbow's range. Evelynn was massively unsure as to how far away Skandia was by now, but all she could see was ocean on all sides. Soon, both wolfships were left behind the Araluen ship, unable to continue with so many of their crews wounded.

The trip was quick from then on, though Evelynn couldn't fight the feeling that they were still walking right into danger, blind to the warning signs.

It was the midday a week later when they finally came into port in Hallasholm. Will glanced out along the landscape with a distant look in his eyes, repeated by Evanlyn when she came above. Maddie quickly dashed onto dry, solid land, clearly happy to be off the boat. Horace watched after Maddie's antics with a smile, before joining Will and Evanlyn in their trip down memory lane. Evelynn…

Evelynn was belowdecks, wondering why she had this horrible, terrible twisting feeling in the pit of her stomach. Not to mention, why Skandia gave her such a bad feeling in general. She couldn't clearly remember anything in her past regarding the northern country, but she felt it in her mind. Not only this, but she felt like something was going to go horribly, terribly wrong while they were here, but she couldn't quite place what it was. She was sitting absentmindedly in the somewhat out-of-place belowdeck stable on the ship, petting Midnight's side as she did so.

"You wouldn't know what this was about, would you, girl?" Evelynn asked in a hopeless attempt at making sense of her own internal turmoil.

 _No. I'm a horse._

Evelynn looked up at Midnight's playful eyes in surprise. The message seemed to convey itself. Midnight seemed to nod. Evelynn shrugged. This certainly wasn't the strangest thing that had hever happened.

"Well, if you don't know, who would…?"

 _Maddie. Or Will._

"They don't seem to know either…"

Evelynn hadn't noticed Will making his way belowdecks to search for her before they set out to the Great Hall. Midnight snorted, and Evelynn glanced up at Will. His face was currently trying to contain a smile, and failing quite miserably at it.

"What are you so happy about?" Evelynn asked, maybe a little sharply. She was embarrassed at being caught talking to her horse.

"You know, all Rangers do it," he said, seeming to read her mind.

"Really."

"No kidding."

"Maddie's never talked to Bumper."

"Not in front of you. She did it plenty when she thought I wasn't watching during her apprenticeship."

Evelynn mulled over the information, and shrugged.

"Anway, we're in port now, and I was mostly coming down to get you. And Tug," he said, as his own horse snorted in annoyance at being overlooked for a mere moment. "You should probably bring Midnight. I'll grab Bumper, since I don't think Maddie's going to even consider coming on board again until it's time for the return trip. Horace and Evanlyn will just have to get their horses themselves," he said, glancing up in the case that the current royal family heard his statements. Apparently, even if they did, they were choosing to ignore him.

Maddie led a saddled and bridled Midnight off the ship, Will coming behind her with the two other Ranger horses trailing behind him. Evanlyn and Horace glanced back. A wicked smile crossed Will's face.

"Horace, wonder if the Skandians have yet managed to get on horseback without feeling like Halt on a boat," Will said, and Evelynn left them to their plotting as to how to get a Skandian on horseback. _Hopefully, they really are friends with the Oberjarl, or we'll be in trouble,_ she thought as she caught up to the land-happy Maddie.

"Will's got Bumper," Evelynn told her.

"Alright. I'll thank him when he gets over here."

Once all horses, Rangers, royals, and apprentices were on land(most of them on horseback at that), they headed out to the Great Hall. The twisting feeling returned to Evelynn's stomach after the carefree few minutes she had spent reorienting herself to solid land, and she couldn't help but worry about what could possibly be in store for the group by trip's end.

 **Sorry for the quick progression of events, I can't write boats. That made no sense... um... hope the point got across anyway...**

 **Once again, three more chapters - oh, shoot, I mistitled chapters in the doc, I just noticed this... shoot. Uhm... two chapters! Two chapters until the big backstory reveal, and in that time, I'm still taking guesses. I've had only one so far, and I'm a little upset by this... I want to know your thoughts on this! (Who knows, you might even get it right... ;) )**


	10. Chapter 9

**Herro, new chapter! I... have nothing to report. I think that's good? Anyway.**

 **Reviews!**

 **hopeweaver19: haha, I can't believe I'm keeping this unclear so well...**

 **AreiaCananaid: thanks! I'm not the greatest at writing action, so that makes me feel better about that, actually. XD**

 **Disclaimer: I am not John Flanagan.**

 **9**

They were greeted warmly by Erak when they got up to the Great Hall. Even if he and the rest of the Skandians didn't make a regular practice of riding, the Oberjarl had at least had stables built, for when he had guests who did. It came in very handy, having five horses in total, two of which who couldn't be trusted to stay where they were for hours on end without some form of restriction. They went back inside the Great Hall, where Erak briefed them on the events up until that point. Evelynn was aware that the Oberjarl was very worried about Fenn's group, and Evelynn was further regretting even talking to him, even though it had been months prior. Maddie's words of comfort rang in her head, but did little to relieve her anxiety.

They spent the night in a guest hut, Will rigging up a series of sheets to provide the female members of the party with some more privacy. The next morning, Will and Maddie were going to investigate Fenn's latest known location. Since Evelynn should still continue to practice and train on this trip, Maddie was bringing her along, though she didn't think that it would take more than two or three days, tops. Based on his normal pattern, Fenn would likely be long gone by the time the trio of Rangers arrived.

Evelynn still slept fitfully. She felt very strongly that they really, really shouldn't be chasing after Fenn. Maybe it was just because this was her first actual mission, but Evelynn was wracked with unease about the coming days. Despite Maddie's confidence, Evelynn doubted that it would really take only two o r three days. Of course, that could just be her, but she had no solid way to know this. As Evelynn lay awake, worrying, she didn't notice when she finally drifted off into uneasy sleep.

The next morning came quickly, and with it, a new wave of anxiety for Evelynn. She watched as Will and Maddie stowed the few things they were likely to need in the way of food, water, and medical kits in their horse's saddlebags, before the three of them set out. Evelynn found herself continuously looking back towards they way they came as they traveled, none of the words Maddie spoke to her truly reaching her ears. Maddie seemed confident, the exact opposite of Evelynn's current state. Every possible worst-case scenario was flying rapidly through her head, trying to plan for every single fault in the older Rangers' judgements.

"Hey, wanna hear a story to pass the time," Will asked, seeing Evelynn's nervous state. The poor girl was jumping at every single noise she heard.

"Uh… sure," Evelynn said, curious as to where this was going.

"It's about Maddie."

Now Will clearly saw the change in the young girl's mental focus. Maddie glanced over at him, shooting him a brief glare before continuing to scan the surrounding land. Never could be too careful, and despite Evelynn's worries, the elder Rangers were taking plenty of precautions to lower the chance of something going terribly wrong.

"Well, Maddie wasn't always how she is now," Will began. Maddie snorted. She used to be far from her current state of calm and alertness. She knew exactly where her former mentor was going with this.

"What do you mean?" Evelynn asked.

"Maddie, technically, was a princess."

Evelynn's jaw dropped, and Will knew he had achieved his goal in that regard.

"Really?"

"Yeah. She also was rather fold of sneaking out of the castle at night to hunt small animals, from what Evanlyn and Horace tell me."

Maddie smiled faintly at the memory. Oh, how different her life would have been if she had just obeyed her parents all the time. And how boring, she added.

"Then, her parents caught her, but it wasn't the first time she had been doing this, they knew. And I was being a very, very isolated man at the time," Will continued, his gaze going somewhat distant, before snapping back to the present. "So, she was apprenticed to me."

"I brought a maid," Maddie threw in, shaking her head at her younger self's strange needs.

"Why?"

"I thought it would be a few weeks with my Uncle Will, then I'd go back to the castle, and I'd get to run around in the woods and we'd have fun." Seeing Evelynn's shocked look, she added, "it's true. I had strange ideas of what a Ranger's apprentice did at the time."

"You told me they do housework," Evelynn said. Will snorted.

"Pulled a Halt on her, did you?"

"Hey, so did you."

They bickered about how close their personal mentorship tactics fell to Halt's, and Evelynn just watched them in strange, strange lack of understanding. Eventually, Will returned his focus to his story.

"Soon enough, Maddie and I ended up investigating a Ranger's death in another fief. That turned into… something much more complicated," Will recalled, remembering the mission in question. Maddie snorted.

"'More complicated' makes it sound much simpler than it was," Maddie commented. "If I recall, it was all Ruh's fault that it became 'more complicated'."

Evelynn cast a questioning glance to Maddie. Who was this Ruhl character?

She didn't get a chance to ask, since a loud rustling to the side pulled all of their attention away from the story of Maddie's apprenticeship. Will and Maddie continued to talk, but without detail. Clearly, they weren't very focused on their conversation, as Evelynn noticed both sets of eyes scanning the sides of the road. Something had moved, and they weren't taking any chances with their safety. Will motioned quickly for them to get down, and though Evelynn didn't see the cause of the alarm, she did so without hesitation. An instant later, a crossbow bolt went whistling over their heads, embedding itself at a tree on the other side of them - right where Will's head had been a moment before. Will dismounted quickly and silently, but Tug's print's didn't change.

"You two keep going - I'm going to trail our apparent assassin in the trees and surprise him," Will whispered to them, and Maddie nodded, and Will disappeared into the trees on either side of them. Maddie glanced nervously at both sides now, both hoping that she could spot their assassin and shoot him and hoping that he didn't appear again.

They were quite lucky, as Will came back half an hour later, pulling an apparently unconscious Skandian behind him.

"Didn't know Yuman was training crossbowmen," he said. "Though, I have to be happy he didn't start hiring Genovesans. That would be a disaster unto itself." Will seemed to grimace, remembering some long-ago event that had given him his hatred of the people. "Anyway, we should probably make camp," Will was saying as he pulled rope out of his bag and quickly bound the unconscious Skandian's ankles. "At least, if we're still thinking of continuing on to Yuman's last known location."

Maddie shook her head. "Erak's going to want to know about this. Not to mention my parents," she said. Will thought about it for a moment, then nodded.

"Yeah. Skandia's making all three of us rather nervous."

Evelynn desperately wanted to know this story, but got the feeling it wasn't going to happen too soon.

"Where'd his crossbow go?" Maddie asked.

"I took it." Will pulled aside his cloak to reveal the confiscated weapon. "Apparently, he thought he'd only need the one bolt… at the very least, I couldn't find any others."

"He'd be quite the fool not to travel with at least one knife," Maddie commented.

"Yeah, he tried to use it on me. I took that as well. He seemed to only have the one. Yuman seems to be wanting his assassins to travel light."

They made it back to Hallasholm before night fell, and left the captured Skandian assassin with a very stressed Oberjarl before turning in for the night.

This wouldn't be the last attempt, Evelynn felt. Fenn had failed twice to get Will out of the picture, and now, it was merely going to make him angrier. Hopefully, the captured Skandian would offer some information about the rebel leader's plans.

 **I like this one.**

 **Last week before... Evelynn's backstory is revealed... I'm very excited... and if you have any last guesses, throw them at me. I'm curious.**


	11. Chapter 10

**Ack! I'm sorry I missed a week! I'm just gonna say...** ** _health class_** **. I know that's no good excuse, but... it's really the reason... anyway. I'm excited for this chapter. *rubs hands together, grinning* This is where things start to get serious... I had so much fun writing this one, I'm gonna let you know. However, since I'm an evil, plotting fanfiction author, I'll hold off the revelations... by answering reviews first!**

 **AreiaCananaid: Oh, there's more comin'... much, much more emotional turmoil...**

 **Disclaimer: I'm not John Flanagan... still in school over here...**

 **Alrighty!**

 **10**

Will had left early the following morning, intending to find Yuman on his own. At least, to some degree. Without the distraction of Maddie and Evelynn, hopefully, he would be able to stay more alert. Also, alone, he had a better chance of drawing out any of Yuman's men who he had sent out after Will, If he could do that, he could probably track them back to Yuman's current hiding spot once they thought they had failed in killing him once more. However, he rode the whole day without a single attempt on his life by Yuman's men, which puzzled him. If their goal was to kill him to break the alliance between Skandia and Araluen, why hadn't they tried by now?

Will puzzled over this change in attitude for the rest of the day. Maybe they had only changed their tactics? Will had a bad feeling about this change of events. His instincts were telling him to go back, tell his group about this change of approach. Usually, he listened to his instincts. As he started to turn back, however, he almost didn't see the smooth, round stone sailing towards his head until it was just a couple meters from his face.

He quickly fell against Tug's neck, and the rock went over them, thudding on the road behind them, too close for comfort. Will pulled out his bow quickly, scanning for the unknown attacker. He heard the grass and leaves on either side of them rustling, so Will quickly amended his statement to be attacker _s_ before leaping up into the trees after sending Tug back the way they had come. It was much harder to see in the dim light leading up to nightfall, and he almost missed the black-clad figure running quietly after Tug as the little horse retreated. Will's eyes narrowed, wondering how on earth the relatively small figure had chucked the rock at his head without making enough noise to alert him to their presence.

Equally quietly, Will followed the figure, matching his footfalls to theirs. This lasted until the sun had fallen completely under the horizon, and the remaining shreds of daylight had left the sky. The figure seemed to be gone by now, so Will caught up to his horse and the two of them headed back to Hallasholm.

Meanwhile, the figure watched silently from the trees above until they were sure that Will was gone before dashing silently after them.

* * *

 _Evelynn wanted to run from the figure in front of her, to run as far as her legs would take her from them, but her legs wouldn't move. Though she could only see the silhouette, she knew exactly who it was. After all, that man had tormented her for years._

 _She had successfully gotten away from the ruin of her family, though their dead bodies didn't clear from her mind. She was more than a little troubled by the sudden change in her life, and she had know clue who could possibly have been behind the attack on her village. Only she and a few others had survived, and Evelynn knew that the sea raiders would be on her tail in no time. She had survived their attack, and they had already rounded up anyone else who had. She wiped her eyes as she darted towards the path leading to the Araluen mainland, from the island that Seacliff was on. No one had expected the attack, and certainly, they hadn't forseen the possibility of such a raid._

 _She glanced down the cliff for a moment too long, hoping beyond hope that the ship the raiders had come on would be long gone by then. She didn't, but then had quickly felt the rattling pain as the rock had slammed into the back of her head, knocking her unconscious, her small form stumbling forwards. It wasn't a very big rock, mind you - the man who had thrown it was still aware of her young age. Oh, well, not much he could do about it._

 _As soon as they had landed in the freezing cold terrain across the ocean, Evelynn had found a way to escape her captors. She had run as far as she could into the woods, hoping beyond hope that they wouldn't notice she was missing until she had been long gone. She had merely been thinking of her personal survival - nothing more. It hadn't occurred to her how her small, three-year-old body could possibly survive the freezing cold of the northern winters._

 _It hadn't been more than a week before she had been found. It hadn't been hard, either - the man had simply been hunting, as it was the season for such sport. He had run across Evelynn's cold form one day, and had taken her unconscious body into his home. She was treated well, until she was about nine. Then, the man started forcing her to work, to exert more energy in the cold winters than should have been necessary. Even summers were devastatingly cold, and Evelynn wasn't sure how she would survive. The northern land had become her prison now, and she wasn't sure how she'd escape the cold, the beatings._

 _Then her chances were slimmed even farther._

 _Because the warmweed started._

Evelynn jolted awake, panting heavily. This woke Maddie up, who was trained to be a fairly light sleeper in the case of danger. Evanlyn and Horace stayed fast asleep, while Will was nowhere to be seen.

"What's wrong?" Maddie asked, rushing over to her young apprentice's side. Evelynn just shook her head. She had figured out where her unease about Skandia had come from. Although the country itself had gotten rid of the use of warmweed in slavery, Fenn Yuman's group was forming up then, and quickly. They disregarded the rules of the Treaty of Hallasholm in all completeness.

She had been a Skandian slave for the first seven or eight years of her life.

No, Maddie wouldn't know that part. Or Will. She'd probably be kicked out by her new caretaker for giving in so easily to the drug. They just couldn't know.

* * *

Will was aware that he was being trailed back to Hallasholm. He just chose to pretend he didn't, and lure his pursuer out. He had no doubts in his mind that it was the same figure as before, despite the fact that he knew he had lost them. He wasn't too sure as to how Yuman had come across such a good silent mover, but to Will's trained Ranger senses, they were making an astounding amount of noise that allowed him to keep tabs on their location.

On his right. Now his left. Right behind him…

He turned just as the new rock came flying at his head. This one didn't miss, and Will was knocked out cold by the force of it. The last thing he heard before drifting into unconsciousness was his urging Tug back to Hallasholm. To get Maddie. He held onto consciousness long enough to get a glimpse of his attacker. Sure enough, it was the black-clad figure from earlier, facial features indistinguishable to his quickly fading consciousness. Then, he was out as cold as the rock that had done the job.

The figure was utterly impressed by their skills. Surely, the fabled Will Treaty that Fenn had warned them about wasn't so able to defend himself as they had thought. They shrugged, before hauling Will's unconscious form over their shoulder, and giving a harsh whistle. A black horse came out of the treeline, and the figure loaded Will's body onto the back, tying him down so that they didn't lose him on their way back to camp.

Now came the fun part. They grinned slightly, awaiting the chance to find out where Araluen's queen was hiding. Then, boom goes the Treaty of Hallasholm, and likely, all limitations on slavery. Their trade would be free to thrive once more. Of course, they realized, it would have been quite nice to have gotten at the other Rangers the other day. They grunted, realizing there was no way to redo the issue. They would still be a problem. However, not a problem entirely unable to be solved. They were probably wherever the queen was, they reasoned. Although, who the Maddie that Will had been muttering about was as much a mystery to them as what the Ranger was doing alone at night was. The figure shrugged. Oh, well, Maddie was probably just Will's wife, or a daughter. They knew that girls weren't accepted into the Ranger Corps. They never had been before. Maddie couldn't be a significant worry to Fenn's plans. The figure, their horse, and their Ranger captive disappeared into the night.

* * *

Bumper and Midnight gave warning calls some time between midnight and dawn, which startled both Maddie and Evelynn out of their uneasy slumbers. What could possibly be wrong? Soon, the warning turned to a greeting, echoed by another horse. Maddie relaxed, recognizing the sound as Tug's. When the two Rangers went outside, however, Will was nowhere to be seen. Just the shaggy Ranger horse. Maddie glanced around, hoping against hope that Will was simply pulling their leg, and that this was all a prank. He couldn't have gone missing, could he…?

As time went on, Maddie became less and less sure. She turned to Tug, and then to her own horse. Seeming to make a silent resolution, Maddie strode to Bumper's stall and saddled him up. Evelynn jogged up next to her.

"What's going on?" She asked. Maddie turned to her with a worried gaze.

"I think Will might be in trouble," she said, and Evelynn grew instantly quiet.

* * *

 **Hahahaha! I am evil, yes, I know this... and I hold onto it with a pride that cannot be diminished.**

 **Nonetheless, this was fun to write ^-^ I'm honestly shocked that it wasn't obvious from the start, basing off the title, but ah well... just serves to show me that my foreshadowing is adequate while being unclear at the same time. Ah, well. In any case, see you next week...**

 **I have much more planned, none of which you will like if you're glaring at your computer screen right now, mentally cursing me out for throwing all these curveballs all in one chapter. You're welcome! :D**


	12. Chapter 11

**Hello! I missed two weeks! I'm sorry! Here's your chapter now!**

 **This one is kinda filler-ish? I wasn't sure what to do with it. Mostly it's a suspense building chapter, I'll be honest. As is the next chapter... then things get even** ** _more_** **serous. I kid you not, this is not the worst it gets... *plots in the corner* Anyway! Reviews!**

 **hopeweaver19: Yes. I did have to do that.**

 **AreiaCananaid: It is sad... it's sad on purpose... also, Will probably won't be okay for a little bit. That's all I'm gonna say. :3**

 **Disclaimer: I'm not John Flanagan. My last name doesn't start with an F...**

* * *

 **11**

Will awoke with a pounding headache, made worse by the constant thumping of… was that hooves? He grudgingly opened his eyes, and found himself looking at the fast-moving dirt road he had been traveling on just earlier that day. He also realized, a moment later when he tried to sit up, that he was tied down to the horse he was on. Whether to keep him on or to keep him captive, or some combination of the two, Will didn't know. Nor did he necessarily care. He couldn't reach his saxe knife to cut himself loose, and he unwittingly gave a low groan.

"Up now, are we?" A voice said from somewhere above him. Will tried desperately to remember what had happened, and came upon the realization that trouble had an uncanny habit of finding him, even when he wasn't looking for it. Will didn't respond. The voice didn't seem to care.

"Well, no matter - we're almost to our destination anyway. So, just hold tight." Will could almost see the malicious grin, and he groaned again. How did he keep getting into these situations? He certainly wasn't making an active effort to find them. Will closed his eyes, and focused on trying to recall what had happened.

A rock. Right. Second time he'd been knocked out with one, and both times with connections to Skandia. Probably not a coincidence, he reflected. The black-clad figure. Ah. That's what had happened. So, he had been kidnapped, rather than killed? What was the point of sending multiple assassination attempts at him if they didn't actually intend to kill him?

A theory settled, half-formed, in his head, and he let out another low groan. He didn't like where it was going, not one bit.

* * *

Maddie and Evelynn were crouched down on the ground, not far from the spot where Will had been taken the night before. Maddie's face was pulled into a tight frown, which only deepened the longer she investigated the disturbances in the road.

"What are you looking at?" Evelynn asked.

"What appears to be the dent of a rock in the road."

"A rock?"

 _Now I know how Will felt when I was his apprentice,_ Maddie thought.

"Yes, a rock. It was pretty obviously moved again, though…"

"Moved?"

Maddie ignored Evelynn at this point, as she was focusing more on the trail of hoofprints in the dirt - going the opposite direction from Hallasholm. _Whatever happened,_ Maddie decided, _the one at fault brought a horse…_ She stood up, and mounted Bumper.

"Come on, we're having an impromptu tracking lesson."

"Why?"

"Do you see those prints?"

"Yes."

"What kind are they?"

"Hoof…"

"Right. So, we're following those." _If I'm right, they should lead us to Will,_ Maddie reasoned.

They followed the tracks for the better part of the day before they decided to make camp. They quickly put up tents and Maddie decided that it would likely be safe enough to have a fire, so Evelynn set that up while Maddie kept watch. Then, Maddie came back and made dinner and coffee, though Evelynn declined. Maddie sighed before pouring herself a cup of the bitter drink. Evelynn fought the urge to scrunch up her nose. She couldn't seem to stand the smell. She wasn't sure why, but it was strange. Maddie seemed to be perfectly happy, however, so Evelynn didn't make a big deal of it.

They set up the watches so that Evelynn went first, then Maddie. While Evelynn was watching the area around them, she kept starting at all manner of noises, even those as simple as the rustling of leaves or grass. She did her best to stay totally still, however, in the case that there was someone nearby. Maddie's lessons drummed in her head, reminding her to stay still. _Trust the cloak,_ she reminded herself, and stayed still. The night was still uneventful, and she got the feeling that Maddie's watch was uneventful by the fact that she wasn't woken up by the older Ranger.

Her nightmares did keep her up, however. She would fall into sleep, then jolt awake as memories she had hoped would remain forgotten arose.

 _Evelynn had been starving. She hadn't realized it was supposedly wrong, she had only taken a small bit of bread. The man had gotten very, very mad at her, though._

" _Who do you think you are, girl? You do as you are told. That's your role in this house. You do as you are told and you don't talk back."_

 _Evelynn whimpered in the corner, her then-long brown hair covering her face._

" _Do you hear me!?"_

 _She nodded, the movement faint. Too faint, she realized, as the man's face contorted into a glare, his face reddening. He stormed off, and Evelynn tried to run out of the way. Out of danger. Too slow, she reached for the door, and she felt the rough hand of the man grasp her arm. He pushed her onto the floor, and the sharp, painful crack of the man's whip fell across her back. When he was done, he pulled her up by the cuff of her shirt - really, more of a rag._

" _Never take food again, you hear me?"_

 _Evelynn whimpered her agreement._

" _Clean this up, girl."_

 _He turned and walked away, scowling. Evelynn rushed to complete the task, wiping tears as she did so._

 _It wasn't so bad, she told herself. It could be worse._

 _It definitely could be worse._

 _It got worse the very next day._

* * *

Will felt the horse stop, and felt himself fall off the back. He was then lifted up and pulled across the road, on a hidden path. _Wonder how I never saw that before,_ he wondered faintly through the headache. He remembered passing this very spot just yesterday. He tried to keep track of where they were going, but found that to be harder and harder with his headache. However, he was aware that it wasn't too long before he was thrown down with little care.

"We're here," the figure said, and Will felt himself be lifted up once more, and then his back was shoved roughly against a pole of some kind. He was then tied against the pole, and found himself looking eye-to-eye with his captor.

"Look at this. The fabled Will Treaty, helpless, taken captive by a lowly Skandian boy."

Will didn't respond. Apparently, his captor wasn't looking for an answer to that statement.

"I thought you'd put up more of a fight than you did. Though, going out into potentially dangerous territory alone was rather foolish, wasn't it?" His captor gave a short, harsh laugh. "Of course, you're a Ranger. Isn't that what you do best?"

Will raised an eyebrow. What was he getting at?

"Oh, wait, that's right. You weren't even in your fief when the map got stolen."

Will was curious now. How did his captor know about his absence? He kept his mouth closed, though. Didn't want to send his captor any sign that he had a leg up.

"So. Tell me this, Treaty. Do you know why you're here?"

Will had a theory, but he didn't like it. He shook his head instead of offering his theory.

"There's some information that you have that we need." He paused, as if to build suspense. "Where's Queen Cassandra of Araluen hiding?"

Will's heart sank to his stomach. His theory was right. This wasn't good. He had known that they wanted to break the alliance between Skandia and Araluen, and he had accepted that he was the most likely target. After all, he was the reason that treaty existed. But Evanlyn didn't have an heir, not since Maddie had chosen to continue her Ranger training instead of returning to her former role as Crown Princess of Araluen. If Evanlyn was out of the picture, Araluen would likely descend into utter chaos without a ruler. He shook his head, keeping his outward reaction to that. His captor grunted in annoyance.

"We'll find out. Even if I have to drag it out of you," he said, and Will got the faint impression that the boy in front of him wouldn't be in the slightest upset if he had to take that course of action.


	13. Chapter 12

**Hi Sorry I missed a lot of days don't kill me ;-;**

 **As a sad way to make this up, you guys get two chapters in one day... (although I will say I don't have the next How Did This Even Happen chapter written since I've been dealing with writers block in that story. Sorry guys!)**

 **Anyway...**

 **Reviews:**

 **AreiaCananaid: heheheheheheheheh... I can't tell if you'll like where this is going or hate where this is going...**

 **Disclaimer: Not Flanagan... no clever remark here... sorry...**

 **12**

"Where did the tracks go?"

Evelynn looked looked down at the road, her shock obvious on her face. The tracks they had been following had just suddenly disappeared, and seemed to be going back the way they had come. Not just this, but it looked like whoever was riding the horse who had made them had attempted the same rock trick as earlier, if the identical imprint in the dirt was anything to go off of.

"I wouldn't know where the tracks went," Maddie replied.

"Well, they stopped!"

"Are you sure it's the same horse?"

"Huh?"

"Remember, Will was likely riding Tug most of the time."

"Then how'd Tug get to us?"

"Will likely told him to do so."

"Why?"

Maddie sighed, and raised an eyebrow at Evelynn.

"Evelynn, why are we out here right now?"

"Looking for - _ohh_ ," Evelynn said, her cheeks reddening.

"Exactly. Think about the usefulness of your questions before you ask them."

Evelynn just nodded.

"If Tug was out here too, how do you know there were two horses?"

"Think about it. If Will sent Tug to us before something happened to him to warn us, and now he's apparently disappeared, how would the person responsible accomplish this?"

"Walking or riding," Evelynn said. Maddie was shaking her head before Evelynn had even finished.

"Not walking. We would have seen more than just hoofprints if they had been."

"Maybe Will just decided to move off the road," Evelynn started. Once again, Maddie was already shaking her head.

"Not possible. Why would he have sent Tug back then?"

"To keep him safe."

"He would move a whole lot slower without Tug, even in the forest, off the road. No, he wouldn't have sent Tug back, even if he was sure there was imminent danger. Even if he could literally _see_ imminent danger."

"So, that just shows that something happened to him."

"Right, but we already knew that because Tug came back and someone was chucking round objects at him. So, there was, at the very least, another person."

"Wait, but there were only horse tracks."

"That we were following."

"Huh?"

"Something happened to Will, I know, because along with the first rock impression in the road, it appeared that he had fallen off of Tug, then someone walked to him and pulled him onto their horse."

"How can you tell that from the tracks?"

Maddie sighed.

"First off, what I'm currently working under the impression of it being Will's impression in the road was there, and didn't seem to get up. Second, the small set of footprints in the dirt were lighter heading towards my assumed Will-shaped impression, then got deeper heading back, seeming to suggest that their maker had picked up something heavy, likely an unconscious or semiconscious Will. Otherwise, there would be more signs of a scuffle than there were."

"Okay… so, there was another person. They could have just gone off the road to be undetected," Evelynn suggested. Maddie was almost sure that her apprentice was trying to find a reason that there was only the one horse. She shook her head, denying Evelynn's newest theory.

"The prints in question never left the road."

Although, the possibility did raise an interesting set of possibilities. What if the rider of the second horse had left the road somewhere? They hadn't noticed any prints other than the ones they had been following, but what if Evelynn was on to something? Maddie decided to play with the idea and see if there was any clear reason she had seen that made it not plausible. For the rest of the day, she puzzled over it while Evelynn slowly tracked backwards, trying to get some idea of what had happened to the tracks they had been following, and coming up with nothing.

They returned to Hallasholm shortly before nightfall, to the great relief of Horace and Evanlyn. They tended to their horses before heading inside to brief the two royals on the situation. Horace, predictably, immediately insisted on going with them the next day after Will. Maddie managed to talk him out of it, though, to the great relief of Evanlyn. Horace may be a great knight, but that didn't mean it was a good idea for him to renew his practice of chasing after the danger-prone Ranger every time he heard that Will got into a bad scrape.

Maddie was all too aware of Evelynn's newfound nervousness while in Hallasholm, however. Though Evelynn thought she was doing a good job not letting on anything was wrong, she was sorely mistaken. Maddie was more than aware that something was wrong with her apprentice, and she was set on finding out exactly what, though she chose to be patient with the matter. It almost certainly wouldn't help matters - not to mention the speed of their mission - if Evelynn found out that Maddie was looking closely at her new jumpiness.

She had regular nightmares, which she usually woke up from sweating, then proceeding to check herself for injuries, then telling herself something in a voice so quiet that Maddie couldn't catch most of the words. She usually drifted back to sleep not long after, but sometimes she'd get up and wander around the house for some time - Maddie noticed that it tended to last from either five minutes to half an hour, at which point she went looking for her wandering apprentice. As always, she was fine, and she stressed the point - almost too much. Maddie was getting worried about Evelynn's mental state.

It wasn't too bad during the day, though. When they went out on their daily searches for clues to Will's disappearance, Evelynn seemed happy to return to her usual state of mind.

One day, though, she had fallen and cut herself badly on a cluster of rocks. They were sharp at the top, and fairly well hidden by pine needles and leaves on the forest floor, so Maddie hadn't been able to warn Evelynn about it. When Maddie pulled the first-aid kit out of Bumper's saddlebags, she had been calm. She hadn't had the faintest clue that Evelynn would have any substantial reaction to the painkilling cream she had to put on the cut until she flinched away from it. The movement was small, and would have been missed by anyone else, but Maddie was already on guard and caught it. She had chalked it up to the cut itself hurting, and hadn't worried much about it. Nothing substantial had happened since then, though, besides the nightmares.

 _Evelynn was freezing. The man - her master - had started making her work outside. She was no boy, but she was forced to do the jobs that the boys usually did. She was his only slave, so she had to do all of the jobs. That's how she had found herself outside, in the cold of Skandian winter, chopping wood with an axe that weighed more than she did. It was probably taller than her, too - she was rather short. Her back hurt, her legs hurt, her arms hurt - everything was both burning and freezing, at the same time, from beatings and the deathly cold outside right now._

 _She almost collapsed from the weight of the axe, but nevertheless managed to push it over her head. Her now ten year old body wouldn't be able to handle this much longer, she could tell. When she finally managed to drag herself inside after finishing, she was met with a cup of what she supposed was likely water. She glanced around quickly for her master before drinking it, fearing punishment. She didn't see him, so she drank it. It was oddly warm, not in her mouth per se, but in the rest of her body._

 _She had no clue that she was going to lose most of herself to the warmth as well as the freezing cold._


	14. Chapter 13

**Lots of stuff happens in this one.** ** _Lots of stuff._** **Basically none of it is good...**

 **BIG OL' THANKS TO AREIACANANAID FOR GIVING ME THE IDEA AT THE END OF THIS CHAPTER!**

 **Seriously.**

 **Guys, go read her story "Letters".**

 **I frickin loved it.**

 **Just.**

 **Just go read it. It's a masterpiece.**

 **YEEEEEEEE**

 **Since this is the second part of the 2-in-1 update, I have no other reviews to add here. But uh... YEH**

 **Disclaimer: Not Flanagan. Same day, no other clever remark... sorry ;-;**

Will had been left alone for the rest of the day and the following night, but not after his captor had taken his weapons. Not only did he have no clue where they were being held in the unlikely scenario that he managed to escape on his own, but he was being guarded - even further lowering the chances of his escape. So, rather than putting his effort mostly into escaping, he put it into figuring out what they planned to do with him. So far, he was liking it less and less. He got the distinct impression that the remainder of his captivity was going to be very painful. He grimaced. He could almost hear Halt's voice, trying to argue with him and Gilan about his going to Skandia ever again, paying no heed to the two-against-one factor. Funny how, even years after graduating and taking on his own apprentice, Halt's disapproving tone of voice still got to him.

Will slept on and off, trying to get as much rest as he could before the coming dawn. He needed his resolve to be at its peak if he wanted to resist the Skandian rebels' tactics. He was resistant to torture from years of training - he had to be - so he doubted it would be quite as easy as his captors thought that it would be to get him to speak up, but there was only so far training would take a person. Usually, that line was moved farther away the more well-rested a person was.

When dawn did come, he was already awake by the time the boy from the day before walked into the tent, wearing clothes more easily recognizable as Skandian. Along with this, he had a knife at his side, and a coil of rope on the other. Will smiled inwardly, though it was a grim smile. He had had plenty of experience with both forms of 'persuasion', from his apprenticeship and afterwards. He kept his outward expression absolutely straight, however, giving away no signs that the boy would likely not get far with this tactic of his.

"So. I'll ask you this, Treaty. I'll spare you the pain if you just tell me where Queen Cassandra is." He waited patiently, fully expecting for Will to offer up the information now that he had seen the weapons. When he did not respond, the boy got annoyed.

"No, you want to play it the hard way? Fine. I'm all for that, too."

He unhooked his rope from his belt and uncoiled it, the flying end of the whip lashing into Will's arm. He cried out in pain inwardly. He had forgotten how much that hurt, just a little bit. He did his best to keep his outward reaction neutral, not giving the boy any hints. He frowned, and lashed it at Will four more times. With each hit, Will simply grew a tiny bit more accustomed to the pain. He had experienced it plenty during his time as a slave in Skandia, after all, and his body seemed to recalibrate to it fairly easily. When Will continued to not react, the boy got more angry. He had clearly expected for Will to crack under the pain.

"Where is Queen Cassandra hiding?" He all but spat at Will, each word reinforced with a lash from his whip. Will refused to respond.

This went on for the rest of the morning, by the end of which Will was covered with partial cuts from the whip. The rope holding him had actually served to protect most of his body from the painful lashes, he reflected with amusement. Apparently, they hadn't quite thought that part of their torture plan through to completion. By the time the boy returned later in the day, however, they had figured it out, and so the ropes were cut free and his hands were re-tied around the post. Will just shrugged. He had become more used to the pain of the whip by now, and he regularly got cut by rocks on missions - he was less worried about those tactics. He was more worried about some of the other tactics they had been throwing back and forth the day before - ranging from near-starvation to near-suffocation, dunking, pushing him off tall structures. For the time being, though, they were keeping him locked up in the tent. He was fairly grateful for this, since they couldn't very well push him into a river or off of a house if he was tied against a post in a very much dry tent that was certainly on the ground. Besides, not knowing their precise location, he had no clue whether there was even a river in the vicinity. He hoped not.

He was left alone for the rest of the day, though, so he guessed that they planned on attempting to pull information out of him in the morning, when he was supposedly still half-asleep. Of course, he noted with a small amount of amusement, they seemed to think that Rangers didn't wake up quickly enough to defend themselves in the middle of the night if they were attacked at that time. For all they assumed about him, they got more than half of it wrong, resulting in him having an unknown upper hand in this ordeal.

They did seem to have figured out that Will was very resistant to torture about a week into their attempts. Now Will was left alone for weeks on end, getting fairly little to eat and drink. They clearly wanted to keep him alive until they got the information they needed, after which Will had no doubts that they would likely kill him. His only use was as a source of needed information about their intended target, he realized. After that… Will decided not to dwell on it. Nothing good would come of it, anyway. He only hoped that Maddie got here before they got any new ideas that he might not be so able to deflect.

One day, what appeared to be a scout rushed into the camp, clearly worried about something. The boy had stopped him.

"Scout, what's your report?"

"Harek, it's the Ranger."

The boy - Will now knew he was named Harek - cursed.

"Did he escape?"

"No, one of the other two. He's found the trail, but went back. I'm not sure why, but that means that-"

"Yes, yes, I get the drill. I'm waiting for Fenn to get back from whatever hare-brained idea he's gone off on this time. Honestly, that whole map business was a waste of time. The Rangers already knew we had it, so it lost the surprise."

A new voice joined the discussion.

"Let him, Harek. It's not like he's been gone in Araluen or who-knows-where-else for a month. You're effectively in charge, so you get to pick our course of action."

"It would be a bad idea for Fenn to come back here and realize we're gone, Skard."

"He still thinks we're at our last location."

Harek grunted in assent before yelling instructions to start packing up. Will braced himself when the Skandian in question stormed in, annoyance written on his face, into Will's tent.

"Somehow, you're behind this, aren't you, Treaty?"

Will didn't respond. That was becoming a regular habit as of late. Harek quickly untied his hands from the pole before re-tying them, free of the support, behind his back and shoving him forward roughly.

"We're moving," he said, and continued to alternate between pulling and pushing Will forward until they reached Harek's horse. Will knew that Skandians disliked riding, so the horse's presence still surprised him. He decided, however, that there were more important issues at hand than whether or not Harek rode regularly. Such as, what was Yuman doing in Araluen? And why for so long?

He didn't get much of a chance to think about it, though, as the group pulled off into the forest, making sure to stay off the path. Will watched behind them as the tell-tale signs of a large group leaving an area were left behind. Harek and Will were up at the front, either from the fact that Harek having a horse made him faster or the fact that he was, for the time being, the leader of the rebel group being unclear to Will. Still, looking back made it more than clear that Maddie would be able to track their progress. That was what he thought until he saw three or four men in the back rolling boulders over their escape path, and his heart sank.

Maddie probably wouldn't be getting to him for a while, he realized. They were hidden from the road and their escape path was blocked off from view. There was no possible way for Maddie to spot them, unless she was riding past right then. He glanced through the trees to the road whenever he could, and so far, no distinctive mottled green-grey cloak in sight. They traveled overnight, effectively making what Will judged to be a four-day trip with sleep into a two-day trip. They ate on the road for the most part, except for Will - they seemed determined to keep up their technique until the bitter end. Unless Will told them what they wanted to know, however, he knew they wouldn't actually let him die.

They finally stopped, in a hidden clearing far off the road. Will could hear sounds of running water, and guessed that there was either a small river or a stream nearby. While the rebel group set up their camp again, Will was left tied to a tree on the edge of the clearing, likely until they set up the tents and could move him without worrying whether he'd find a way to run off unnoticed and blow the whistle on their location. From what Will could tell, it took them around three hours to set up their camp again. After that, Will was dragged into the tent he had spent basically all of his time in and his hands were re-bound behind the pole.

After that startling change of events, things went back to normal for the most part. Around a week in, Harek returned to his initial methods, which proved as unsuccessful as the first time he tried. Will was determined to keep his mouth closed on matters of where Evanlyn was, which was driving Harek crazy. He had seemed to misjudge how long it would take for Will to crack, if ever. When he left each day, it seemed as though he were angrier than the last. He seemed to get an idea, though, at the end of the week. Will had been dozing and listening to the conversations outside of the tent, as usual. At first, they hadn't been talking about anything important, or that he hadn't already heard about. Then, one Skandian emitted a loud grunt of annoyance.

"I'm all out," he had complained to another.

"Relax, we should be getting a new shipment soon."

"How soon?"

"Probably in the next few days."

"I bet that's what Fenn's been up to in Araluen."

This caught Will's attention. He had been wondering about it since the conversation he had heard between Harek and Skard.

"Really? So, then, how's he gonna get it past the Oberjarl? Last time, he almost got caught."

"Look, he'll probably go around Hallasholm next time. Either by ship or by land. He's not risking going through there again with the stuff."

Will heard Harek join the conversation. He tilted his head to see through the gap between the flaps of the tent, and saw the Skandians he was listening in on. One was standing next to a wooden box, a frown on his face. The other had his back to Will, and Harek was right on the edge of where Will could see, opposite the crate.

"Guys, it's hard to come by in Araluen. I hear that the Rangers use it in minimal amounts for medical purposes, but that's about it there - a pain reliever." Will was starting to get a loose idea of what they were talking about, and he really, _really_ didn't like the idea. "He might need to sneak around in the Ranger's spaces to find it, if that's indeed why he's in Araluen. He should have gotten the map and come back, if you ask me."

"Yes, but we would have run out and had no backup supply coming otherwise." Harek snorted.

"So? Is having a backup supply he has to sneak past the Oberjarl to get to us more important than breaking the alliance and taking over so we don't have to sneak around anymore? It's not like the old man has done anything to prevent our raids on the Araluen coast yet."

So that's where the issues he had heard about from the Ranger in Seacliff originated.

"He's not going to. If the best he can do is call upon a bunch of Rangers from Araluen to come here and find us, then he's probably not going to be able to get us to stop anyway."

"Still, I can't be losing slaves to a lack of warmweed," the original Skandian said, and the color drained from Will's face. His guess had been correct, and he didn't like that one bit. Of course the rebel Skandian group would still have slaves. Warmweed was a staple for the slave trade, since it kept them from independent thought. Their only thought was their next dose. Will had lived it, and had been hoping to never have to interact with it again outside of the Ranger medical kit. He sat back, and tried to get his reaction under control before Harek came in. Basing from the footsteps outside, that would be in a few minutes.

When Harek entered the tent, Will had gotten his face mostly under control, but from Harek's curious expression, not entirely.

"What's with you?" Harek asked. Will didn't respond, but his gaze did cut outside the tent flap unconsciously. Harek, to Will's detriment, interpreted this unconscious glance correctly. "Heard what we were talking about, huh? Guess I shouldn't be surprised." Will tried desperately to not let his face or body give away the amount of stress the topic brought up in him. This time, it was a losing battle.

Harek looked confused for a moment, then a small, devious smile crept across his face.

"Is the legendary Will Treaty scared of warmweed?"

Against his wishes, Will's face merely confirmed this fact. A plan started to form in Harek's mind, and Will knew from the slowly growing smirk on the Skandian's face that he wouldn't like it one bit.

 **This is also a longer one.**

 **I'm just realizing this.**

 **I'm seriously good at life, guys.**

 **I actually thought this was two chapters, but nup, it's only one...**

 **YEP**

 **As you can see, I have a** ** _wonderful_** **memory! (this is heavy sarcasm, guys.)**

 **Right so I will try my best to stop leaving you guys on multi-week cliffies. I'm seriously sorry for updates... I have a valid reason for the 14-15th though. That reason is called "I was in Louisiana".**

 **But not for this weekend, I'm just lazy. Don't kill meh ples ;-;**

 **Till next time(whenever that may be)!**


	15. Chapter 14

**Heya!**

 **I remembered this week!**

 **Aren't you guys proud of me?**

 **Reviews!:**

 **AreiaCananaid: Hey, it's fine! Finals are coming up so it's going to be hectic for me too. And yes, I loved "Letters"! I was reading it when I was having a bit of a low point in ideas for this story, actually. I saw the plot of that and a light in my head lit up and started yelling at me, so yeah. XD Well, part of the question of what's gonna happen is answered in this one? I guess? I don't know. XD**

 **Disclaimer: I'm not John Flanagan. I'm not an adult. .**

* * *

 **15**

Maddie was nervous beyond belief, and Evelynn watched her with worried eyes. Will had been missing for at least a month, they hadn't sorted out the rebel issue yet, and Maddie was beating herself up for not checking for the well-hidden scout that had blown her possible rescue mission. Now, she had no clue whether Will was even still alive, not to mention that he could be very, very hurt and in need of medical attention. The more time that passed since they last saw Will, the more nervous Maddie got.

Evelynn was highly aware of this ongoing mood change, and she was worried that it would get in the way of what they had come to do. Watching her pace back and forth in the room they were using was making her nervous. She glanced towards the door, hoping against hope that Will might come through and make Maddie calm down. Alas, no such thing happened, so Evelynn went back to watching Maddie.

"You need to calm down…" She said.

"But Will's still out there, and I have no idea where, if he's okay… if he's even _alive_." Maddie said, but she finally sat down.

"And is this going to _help_ you - or him?"

"I guess you're right…" Maddie sighed. "He would probably tell me off for acting like this," she said with a faint smile.

"You could always go out again and look for him," Evelynn suggested.

"There was no sign of where they had gone when I finally figured out where they were," Maddie countered.

"You probably missed something."

Maddie looked at Evelynn with a new interest. "Like what, pray tell?"

"They're Skandians, right?"

Maddie thought about that, and nodded slowly, an idea forming in her head.

"Let's go," she said, and whisked out the door. Evelynn scurried to pull on her cloak and weapons and followed after her, saddling up Midnight as Maddie was saddling Bumper.

"What's your plan?"

"They couldn't have just disappeared. They had to go _somewhere_ , almost certainly. And if they hadn't, I would have noticed. So, maybe they covered their tracks - meaning, we're going to look around their campsite until we find some sign of where they had gone."

Evelynn could tell it was a good idea. They rode out, onto the road that the two of them had been searching along for days. Suddenly, Maddie veered off, onto a path that had been hidden from them before. They came out into a clearing, signs of a rapidly moved camp present in the dirt. They dismounted, and Maddie went around one side while Evelynn went around the other. Evelynn stopped fairly soon after she started, eyes wide. There was no way that Maddie would have missed this, but it appeared that a couple boulders had been rolled to block view of the obvious track.

They hadn't been trying to conceal themselves, merely covered up their exit. She called for Maddie, and the older Ranger came around and blinked in surprise at the clear trail that she had missed - and would have continued to miss if they hadn't gone around.

"Well, I guess we know where they went now," she said simply, and Evelynn nodded. The sun was starting to go down, so they set up their own small camp in the abandoned site of the Skandians.

She took first watch, and the first half of the night was quiet. Maddie came to relieve her, and she left to her own tent. As she was falling asleep, memories rose, unbidden, to the surface of Evelynn's mind once more. Memories she had wanted to forget.

 _I_ _t was cold - freezing, limb-numbing cold - but Evelynn didn't really notice. Despite the fact that she was outside in this utter cold, she continued to work as efficiently as she could. She didn't even remember what it was she was working on, but she knew that she had to finish the task. Finish the tasks for the day, then she'd get her next dose. That was the only thought running through her mind as she mindlessly worked. This was normal, she had thought - she hadn't considered that it wasn't._

 _The door to the cabin that her master lived in flew open suddenly, but Evelynn barely noticed. She barely noticed as he was yelling at the small, green-clad figure running from him. She only noticed once she was pulled away from her task. No! If she didn't finish her task, she couldn't get her next dose._

 _She couldn't recall any of the rest of that day, even though it was the day she had effectively escaped slavery. She couldn't even remember the face of her rescuer. She just remembered the awful, terrible, mind-numbing effect of the drug. How dependent she had been upon it to survive. It had completely taken over her senses. Taken control of who she was, and she never, ever wanted to feel that again. Never wanted to see it again, in anyone else._

She jolted up and glanced at Maddie's watching form, barely visible in her cloak. Maddie didn't seem to notice her arousal, but for all Evelynn knew, she had been keeping tabs on all of her dream awakenings. This might just be another added to the pile. If Maddie was paying attention, that is. Evelynn tried to drift back off to sleep, but to no avail. She didn't want to dream about it again.

* * *

Turned out, it was only the one Skandian who had run out of warmweed.

When Harek went around, he got replies ranging anywhere from that people were running low and couldn't spare any to having just enough, but not having much to use to wait for Fenn to return. Will was growing increasingly nervous with each passing minute. He desperately hoped that Harek would come back unvictorious, and that Will would be spared the awful plant. So far, so good, but Harek hadn't returned yet - with or without the dreaded drug. In the meanwhile, Will had been slowly but patiently working away at the knots holding him. He had no idea how he'd get past the camp, nor did he know where they were in relation to Hallasholm, but with any luck he'd find the road and get back to a safe area. Of course, he didn't have Tug, but the other possibility was that Maddie was going farther looking for him and was close enough he could ride with her back to Hallasholm. He wasn't sure how far he'd get without his bow, however, which worried him.

His heart sank when Harek returned to the tent, a smirk on his face, waving a small handful of warmweed. The sweet smell got stronger the closer the Skandian came to Will, and he tried to pull away.

"Aww, looks like someone has bad memories of harmless little warmweed," Harek said in a highly condescending voice. "You seem to know what it does, so I'll give you two options."

Will had a good idea what those options would be.

"Either. You tell me where Queen Cassandra is on your own, _or_ " he paused, as if for dramatic effect, "I can pull it out of you with this." To show his point, he waved the warmweed around in front of Will's face, which paled visibly.

He desperately wanted to avoid the warmweed. Every single part of his body was screaming at him to just tell Harek what he wanted to know. Horace was with Evanlyn, and Evanlyn could stand her own against enemies. They'd also be surrounded by masses of Skandians who were against their cause. His mind came up with all sorts of reasons to just give the game up, but he kept his mouth shut. There was no telling that they wouldn't just kill Will after they got what they needed from him. Even worse, he could end up reliving his previous time in Skandia - a mindless slave, driven only by the effects of warmweed. Neither option seemed good. Harek frowned.

"You sure you want to do this? I'll give you until the count of three. One…" Will pulled desperately at the ropes holding his hands. "Two…"

"Harek!"

Harek frowned deeply.

"What is it?"

"Fenn's back, and wants to talk to you!"

"Oh, by Gorlog's beard… Coming!"

Will relaxed visibly as soon as Harek left the tent. Fenn probably had more warmweed with him, so it was vital for Will to get out of the camp as soon as he could.

* * *

Maddie and Evelynn rode hard the next day, following the easily tracked path that Fenn's crew had left behind. Maddie's face was completely straight, although the determined light in her eyes was unmissable. Evelynn rode behind her, fingering nervously at the hilts of her knives. Would she have to use them?

 _I'll be here too,_ Midnight remarked. Evelynn glanced up at Maddie, then remembered Will's words on the boat about all Rangers talking to their horses.

"I know," she said. Maddie didn't even look back.

 _Of course you do. You're riding me._

Evelynn rolled her eyes. The horse wanted to have the last word, she'd let her.

 _I do._

The two Rangers rode through the night now, since the tracks were easy to see even then. Evelynn had a feeling it was also out of some sort of worry for her mentor that put her beyond where any normal person would have stopped.

Sometime in the middle of the second day, Evelynn started to hear voices somewhere ahead of them. Maddie frowned as she caught some of the words. Evelynn couldn't catch anything specific. They slowed down, and went forward cautiously, letting their horses pick the best path. Maddie reached for her bow, and motioned for Evelynn to do the same. The two of them eventually dismounted, and moved silently through the trees,on active guard for scouts or lookouts that would alert the nearby camp of their presence. So far, nothing.

They got their first look at the camp, a mishmash of tents and boxes. There was a boy who was fairly thin by Skandian standards talking to Fenn, who was currently dressed in a way much more appropriate to Skandia. Evelynn stopped short. She recognized Fenn now, more than she had before. Her face drained of its color as she caught the word _warmweed_ in the conversation between them.

Fenn had been responsible for her misery, her mindless slavery under the effects of warmweed. Maddie noticed her reaction, and pulled her aside, out of earshot.

"Hey. Are you going to be able to go in there?" She asked in a low, worried voice. Evelynn paused. Could she go in and face her old tormentor?

"I… yes." Evelynn said. The best way to deal with the painful memories was to face them head-on, she reasoned.

"Good."

They returned to their vantage point, where the two Skandians were entering a tent. Evelynn narrowed her eyes after Fenn. She truly wished she had never met him in her life. They quickly and quietly slipped around to the edge of the camp where the back of the tent was facing and Maddie slipped under the bottom of it, unnoticed by the Skandians inside and out.

Maddie crept along the floor until she was inside the tent, then she held completely still. _Trust the cloak, trust the cloak,_ she thought, like a mantra. If they didn't expect to see you, they probably wouldn't, if you stayed still. Alas, neither Skandian noticed. The smaller one seemed quite proud of something. Maddie had to fight back a gasp as she realized what that something was.

Will.


	16. Update

Hey.

So, my computer's charging cord is not working... Leaving me unable to update this story regularly. I appreciate all the comments on my story in this time, just be aware that there will probably not be another update until after July 11th.

Sorry everyone!


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